


Chrononauts

by cherrybubblegum



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: F/M, Odin/Nyx, Revelations Route, Slow Burn, Some references to the Hidden Truths DLC but nothing critical
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2016-09-27
Packaged: 2018-07-26 13:40:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 25,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7576045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherrybubblegum/pseuds/cherrybubblegum
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>As they lay in the grass, Nyx found herself asking a question usually directed at herself, “Odin, how</i> old <i>are you?”</i></p><p>  <i>It was asked half in jest, but when he didn’t immediately respond, she turned her head and saw an introspective expression on his face, glimpsed between the blades of grass tickling her cheeks.</i></p><p>  <i>“My darkest and dearest spectre, age is but a number given to those who walk the linear path of time. But I think it is obvious that those trusted with great power such as we have left the path and forged our own convoluted way.”</i></p><p> </p><p>Nyx didn't make friends. But one exception leads to others, and eventually she finds herself involved in the lives of the other members of Corrin's army. An unusual magical energy draws her to Odin Dark, and she finds herself caught up in the mysteries surrounding the three Nohrian retainers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Beginning

Nyx had been trying her best to avoid the war, so surely it was some bizarre act of fate which had her run right into Corrin’s army, at the isolated Sevenfold Sanctuary atop the imposing Mount Sagesse. Only in the Bottomless Canyon would she have been more surprised to find an entire army.

“Why don’t you join us instead of travelling alone?” Nyx could probably think of at least 10 reasons to tell this young leader, but decided to keep quiet. For all Corirn knew, Nyx could have been a mass murderer, and yet she was offering her a place in the army. (In fact, Nyx _was_ a mass murderer) Corrin was welcoming… if not stupid.

Her original goal was to speak with the Rainbow Sage and see if he could offer any solution to her condition. If Corrin was heading that way anway, Nyx didn’t see how it changed her plans. Plus, in the likely event the Rainbow Sage couldn’t help her, there was always the possibility that someone currently enlisted might be have some insight.

Plus, maybe there was a part of her that was tired of being alone.

 

 

 “What’s that you’re reading?” It was Mozu, the young woman with pigtails Nyx sometimes saw working in the kitchens. She had a big bucket of what looked like potatoes in her arms. It looked heavy, but she seemed to be carrying it like it was nothing.

Nyx was seated under some shade by her tent, a heavy volume sprawled in her lap. Nyx had placed her tent at a distance from the others, but she still managed to run into Mozu frequently –the girl seemed to get around, always bustling to some activity or another. She seemed to make up for her lack of abilities on the battlefield by being particularly useful around camp. Nyx, on the other hand, while adept in battle tried to keep to herself as much as reasonable when at rest.

Nyx glanced down at the open pages briefly before answering. “Alchemy. Sort of.” The book was actually about harnessing the magical properties of various substances, but alchemy had a nicer ring to it for the average listener. Such books were mostly for amusement now; previously, similar complicated and esoteric texts had been a desperate attempt to find a cure to her immortality.

Mozu adjusted the weight of her load in her arms, and peered into Nyx’s lap at the pages. “Gosh! That looks so complicated! I wish I could read big ‘ole books like that…”

Like Nyx, Mozu was the only survivor of her small village. Their circumstances were vastly different, of course, but Nyx couldn’t help but foster a bit of a soft spot for this cheery if not somewhat misplaced youth.

“Would you like it if I found you something to read?” One of the benefits of living well past her normal lifespan was her capacity to collect books. She didn’t doubt she’d have something suitable hidden away.

“Oh yes! I’d like that very much!”

 

 

With a little bit of prompting from Mozu, Nyx had been added to the chore rotation. The biology of the dragon realm still confounded Nyx –how entire buildings could be sprung from nothing, yet resources had to be harvested manually was a mystery to her.

Mozu had assured her paddy duty was preferable to collecting ore in a dusty open-pit mine, so she’d given her a quick lesson on how to both plant and harvest rice in the ankle deep water. The work was actually quite relaxing and methodical when she had the luxury of being the only one in the field.

Today however, her solitude was short-lived.

Nyx tried to ignore her irritation at hearing someone wading through the water towards her with loud, sloshy steps. He was a recent recruit, one of Prince Leo’s retainers, and although Nyx had been hoping another dark mage would join Corrin and her army, Nyx didn’t even need to converse with the man to know she and him were nothing alike. His traditional mage’s outfit, which he seemed to wear at _all_ occasions, was a bright yellow that somehow matched his… _robust_ personality. Where Nyx leaned towards obscurity, he seemed to crave drama and attention. He was the kind of person who wished nothing more than for people to take him seriously, but in doing so managed to do just the opposite. All this she had managed to ascertain without ever speaking to him directly, only fueling her confusion as she felt his shadow block some of the sun from her back, as she kept her eyes on her hands tending the little plants. He had definitely come to speak with her.

“Nyx. Can you spare a moment?”

She sighed and stood up from her semi-crouched position. “I suppose. What’s on your mind, Odin?” She adjusted the brim of her wide straw hat to see him properly. There was no sense of urgency on his face, so she supposed he hadn’t come on some urgent errand for the Prince.

His arm stretched out in her direction and ended with a single extended finger pointed directly at her, only a few inches from her nose. “I command you to stop infringing on my identity, knave!”

She blinked at the accusatory finger. “Excuse me?” Confusion aside, she was mildly affronted. Was this someone trying to use their assumed authority on her? She was here by choice and was not open to direct orders outside the battlefield.

“Your innocent act is ill sorted with your menacing aura! And therein lies the fault! You and I are cut from the same dark, mysterious cloth.” He finally lowered his arm and his singular pointing finger, and instead used the limb to form some new ridiculous posture.

Confusion quietly overpowered any previous feelings of animosity. “What are you talking about?”

“’From childhood, she showed a tremendous talent for the black arts. Her family, terrified of her powers, raised her almost against their will.’”

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Undoubtedly anyone in camp who’d heard of her past had their own opinion, whether they were rude enough to share it with her or not.

Odin continued, “These are the sorts of things I’ve heard about your past, and I have to say… it’s quite impressive. More than impressive –your past looms large and hungry behind you. It l _urks_ , it _leers_ , it _lunges_ out from the shadows, forcing me to acknowledge… you are my true peer. A fellow spelunker in the darkest of abysses.”

 _Impressive._ That was a new one. She stood dumbly in the ankle deep water and tried to make sense of this unusual individual. Had he sustained a head injury in a previous battle? Or perhaps he, like her, had dabbled in some dangerous hexes and had sustained some long-lasting consequences? She sensed some sort of unusual magic on him; powerful magics like this could sometimes be sensed by other powerful mages, a sensation Nyx would compare to the indistinct feel of static electricity. Nyx was familiar to it only in the aftermath of powerful spells, or in the presence of very powerful mages or artifacts. She observed his lopsided smile and ridiculous accessories and thought maybe she needed to re-evaluate her own magic sensing abilities.

He was still looking at her expectantly so she thought it best to respond in the most non-committal and truthful way possible. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Somehow this answer looked like it pleased him. “In this as in all things, understanding is a superfluous luxury! All you need to know is this: my appreciation for your origins borders on envy… And I was hoping we could be friends.”

 _Friends_. Nyx did not formally make friends. Solitude, she felt, was an appropriate punishment for her actions, some form of atonement. Yet she had accepted Corrin’s offer to join her troupe. Whether she accepted Odin’s request or not, she was already a hypocrite.

She eyed Odin, with his unusual posture and hopeful sparkle still in his eye and she wondered if having such a man as a friend would be any sort of luxury at all.

Still mildly lost for words, she responded, “Sure.”

Instead of being deflated by her lack of enthusiasm, he beamed and clapped his hands together. “Excellent!” He gestured widely at the expanse of shallow water. “What is it that brings you out here in this solitude? Collecting sacred herbs? Searching for powerful aura stones?” He bent at the hips and began moving his hands below the surface of the water hopefully.

“Rice, actually.”

 

 

Nyx was leaving the target field, wiping at the perspiration on her brow. Nyx had never been able to convince Mozu to join her, but on one such excursion had run into Reina, one of the archers from Hoshido who rode on the strange giant birds.

She and Reina had gotten along surprisingly well; the older woman never ceased to get a kick of being called a “child” by someone who looked less than half her age, and Nyx found it intriguing how someone could have such an apparent love for death and destruction yet still manage to have a motherly demeanor. The woman was well liked by everyone, and Nyx wasn’t an exception. They’d gotten into a somewhat regular habit of training together, time and duties permitting.

Despite training alone for decades, Nyx had begun to see the benefit of having someone else to train with. Sometimes.

As she left the threshold, she heard the distinct and sorrowful cry of Odin Dark.

“Aaaawww man, did you just finish? I would have loved to practice with you!” He was coming from the opposite direction, towards the fields.

Nyx avoided unnecessary rudeness and did not mention that she, in fact, would have not loved to practice with him. “Why is that?”

He seemed stunned at her question. “Why?? Why, to glimpse some of your power of course! We dark mages could share our secrets and all that.” He chuckled to himself, then added almost as an afterthought, “Besides, Leo mentioned that Corrin was thinking of pairing us up during the next battle.”

She wasn’t sure what she thought of _that_. “Oh. Well, as you said, I just finished so…”

“On the morrow then?”

“I don’t think so. Maybe.” She wondered if the magical aura he still emanated was worth further investigation, and if it was worth a few hours spent alone with Odin.

Odin looked momentarily perplexed before he grinned, his hand going up to his face. “Ohohoho, I see. You wish to keep your dark arts a secret from the common folk, is that it? Allowing a glimpse only in the face of true battle?” Removing his hand, he flung out his arm dramatically. “Well do not underestimate me, Nyx! I am not merely a journeyman in the magical arts! I am—“

“Hey Nyx! Great session today! I’ll see you tomorrow –have those fireballs ready for me!” Reina walked between her and Odin, her kinshi following behind her.

When her view of Odin was clear again, he was looking at her with half a question written in his features. Deciding the situation was getting a little bit uncomfortable, Nyx decided to continue on her way out. “I should probably be going now. Goodbye Odin.”

She could almost sense him deflate behind her. “Oh okay. Have a nice afternoon…” She was grateful he didn’t pursue the issue further, although she was left feeling just the slightest bit guilty.

 

 

During grounds-cleaning later in the week, Nyx managed to run into Odin again. She hadn’t been able to find any reasonable excuse to turn down his offer to help her clean and was still feeling a little bit bad about running away from him at the training grounds the other day. The clean-up itself had gotten done faster, and if nothing else she couldn’t help but enjoy the magical buzz she got from being within his proximity, although she had yet to see his abilities in use. Aside from having to convince him the dirty old fire tome they’d found was just that –a dirty old fire tome and not some mythical ancient artifact buried in half an inch of soil for a millennia, their evening together was almost normal.

When he appeared the next morning at breakfast, Nyx couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he was running into her on purpose, despite her previous cold attitude towards him.

“Ah finally! I get to see what nourishes your dark energies, what food awakens your inner—“

“Odin everyone eats the same food. My tray looks exactly the same as yours.”

Odin had joined her previously empty table in the back corner of the mess hall. She was usually in early, to avoid the rush. If she was feeling sociable, sometimes she would join Mozu or Reina at one of their tables. Odin still seemed unaware of her usual tendency to prefer being alone, and was now seated beside her on the little bench, scrutinizing their identical trays of porridge, peaches, and pudding.

Instead of looking disappointed, she heard a small chuckle.

“Ah, that’s what you think. But you see, my _fell hand_ ,” he dramatically removed his arm from behind his back, revealing a second small bowl of rice pudding which he daintily placed on her tray, “had other thoughts this morning.”

She eyes the contraband extra helping with dull disbelief before giving a sideways glance to her new friend. He was looking smug. It would seem he used his association with Prince Leo to teef extra helpings of food from the kitchens.

“Sadly, it’s not from the rice we tended the other day, which will undoubtedly have a much higher potency –“

“Thanks, Odin.”

Satisfied with her response, Odin began working on his own breakfast. They were now joined by an incredibly scowly red-haired woman Nyx had not spoken with before, and Laslow. Laslow she’d met the previous day, when he tried to solicit her for a cup of tea (which she promptly refused). He looked at her almost apologetically, whether for Odin’s behavior or his own interaction with her the other day, she was unsure.

The air at the table now tingled with magical energy. It was strong enough now that she was surprised Odin didn’t sense it –although everyone’s abilities to sense such things varied, Odin’s experience with magic should have made him at least slightly aware of it. Was it because it partially belonged to him? She thought of her own curse; it had been affixed to her so long she could only feel the unnatural flow of time in her cells if she purposefully set her mind to it. But she _could_. She knew the other two did not use magic, so the augmentation of the sensation was only more perplexing.

Mouth still partially full of oatmeal, Odin seemed to remember his courtesies. “Mmm! Laslow, Selena, this is Nyx! My new confidante of the abyss. Partner of darkness. Ally in—“

“Friend.” Nyx supplied in monotone.

“Aha!” His happy exclamation surprised her, as he clapped a heavy hand on her back. “And to think I was starting to worry you didn’t like me…”

For whatever reason, Nyx found her next bite of oatmeal particularly hard to swallow.

 

 

Although it seemed to be through Odin’s own interests that brought the two of them into proximity within the castle grounds, it was by some unknown force which seemed to continually bring them together in battle. And for that, at least, Nyx was glad.

Although not unknown to her, it was challenging to get a feel for the Hoshidan magic, the spells which housed fighting animal spirits which they generally seemed to prefer. Until the arrival of Leo and his respective retainers, she was the only Nohrian mage on the field. Working with the foreign magic users had been difficult, and joining a party of users of various blades –swords, naginatas, axes and the like –often brought her into closer proximity to the enemy than she was comfortable.

As Odin had anticipated, Corrin often had the two of them fighting in together, as if putting Nohrian mage and Nohrian mage together like a simple equation.

Odin would rush the unsuspecting enemy from behind with a Fimbulvetr spell (which he had branded with some other name she could never remember), shouting about his blood or some other catchphrase that suited him at the time. While their foe was dazed, she would follow behind him with whatever spell met her needs. Often this would grant them victory, or at least enough so to be relieve by backup in time for the next wave.

It was during battle however, that Nyx observed that Odin was, for all his flair, only mediocre at magic. Maybe it was because he seemed to pump himself up so much that her expectations had been overly high, or maybe it was that unusual aura he radiated, but through repeated encounters she quietly noted his abilities and there was no denying it; Odin did not have any particular talent for magic.

They were proficient enough as a pair to keep on the offensive however, avoiding any real injuries, although Odin’s skill or lack thereof continued to niggle the back of her mind.

On one day however, they weren’t so lucky.

The two of them had been quietly working through a patch of dense forest. Although it afforded them some cover, it gave the same boon to their enemies. Nyx hardly had time to respond to the first surprise assault with her own counter spell before a steel katana was coming down for a follow-up attack. She knew the second blow would be serious, if not fatal.

Her eyes closed, she waited for the blow to come, already grasping the gash in her upper arm from where the first strike sliced through her flesh, warm blood slipping between her fingers.

She felt a movement, a brush of the air, but felt no blow. Her ears only registered the second half of Odin’s cry as he took the blow and expertly diverted it, preventing injury to both of them.

In the moment afterwards, with the enemy soldier slowly regaining his footing, Odin crouched beside Nyx, muttered something angrily, and flashed two fire balls from his palm up into the sky, giving away whatever cover they had left.

Odin shoved a vulnerary into her hands. “Quick, for your arm. We should be getting help soon but just in case…” To his credit this was the most serious Nyx had probably ever seen him. His knuckles were white from gripping his tome, and a bead of sweat was collecting on his forehead.

Nyx undid the vial and immediately felt the effect of the mixture on her wound; the burning ceased, and her skin seemed to stick itself back together and stop the bleeding.

“Thanks, Odin.” She meant it, a warm wave of gratitude washing over her along with the healing effects.

They both stood up, ready to take another hit from the swordsman who was returning his attention on them. His actions where ended with a faint whistling sound accompanied by an arrow in his neck.

Nyx turned herself in the direction the arrow had come from, and there on a slight incline a few dozen meters away was Niles, the retainer with the dirty mouth.

“How’s my timing?” Niles asked cooly.

“Perfect, I owe you!” Odin replied.

“I may as well stick around. Your fire show was sure to have brought every enemy within sight rushing here for an encore.”

Nyx didn’t have much time to appreciate it at the then, but later that evening she realized she may have just had her life saved that day.

 

 

Nyx sat on a rock surface which seemed to be trying to push itself out of the otherwise tree-littered forest floor, soil only overtaking the large mass at the furthest edges of its many meter radius, eventually blending into the brush and saplings of the rest of the forest. She idly wondered how big the boulder itself must be, hidden in the earth. Perhaps this was only the tip of a much larger formation which sprawled below the entire surface of the little copse in the northern edge of their camp’s territory. And how many hundreds or thousands of years did it take for the organic matter to slowly overtake it, only to leave the tiny surface she now sat on? If time even operated in Corrin's strange dragon dimension...

A crunching of leaved diverted her attention. Odin was walking towards her, a large sack over one shoulder. “You came! I mean—“he coughed, “—Ah Nyx… you have come, as I knew you must.”

Since the incident in the battlefield, Nyx had been more forgiving of Odin’s eccentricities. One being his request to meet her “at dusk” at this seemingly random location. She was tempted to roll her eyes, but found herself smiling instead. “Yes Odin. You sent a messenger to have me meet you here.” She assumed the messenger may have just been for added flair. “What did you need?” She hoped he didn’t need her to help him unstick one of his zippers again; that had been… awkward.

He put down his bag beside her on the rocky ground. “We are allies in shadow, you and I. We walk the same lonely path of endless dusk. When I acknowledged that in you, we formed a bond not easily broken… But! There can only be one dark paragon! Two cannot stand together at the summit. And so we must settle this in the only true way: with the names of our black magics.”

Nyx shifted uncomfortably. “As usual, I have no idea what you’re talking about… Are you saying you want to have a duel using black magic?” Orochi had requested something similar just the other day. Nyx did not relish the thought. She wasn’t worried about losing to Odin, quite the contrary. She was concerned that highlighting their differences in skill would only bring attention to his relative inadequacy in the subject. She had been thinking about the best way to bring up the issue and address it, and she didn’t think this was it.

She was momentarily relieved when he replied, “Nothing so gauche.” But then he indicated his burlap sack. “We shall duel using the ominous names of our cursed relics!”

“Wait, what?” _Names?_

“Begin! First is this accursed talisman… the fetish affixed to my left hand, a fell relic wrought of ash and misery… I give you… _Graugang, the Gray Doom_!” He stood with the mentioned hand outstretched in a typical dramatic pose –only a slight variation on his usual “dark posture”.

Nyx remained silent. There was a strange tickling sensation deep in her chest, crawling up her throat, which was strangely familiar and not entirely unpleasant.

“Come. Now it is your turn to reveal the true name of one of your cursed relics!”

Laughter, Nyx recognized the sensation just as it came bubbling lightly from her lips, feeling nearly as foreign as the word “Graugang”.

She tried to recover from her laughing spell, one of the few spells she would admit to being unaccustomed to. Odin eyed her bemusedly as she responded. “You’ve… given names to each of your relics? I… uh… haven’t done that.”

“Wh-what?! You don’t name your relics?! How do you even DO magic?”

“Like you said, I seem to have a natural talent for it… for better or worse…”

“Hmph. I was wrong about you Nyx… your behavior is unbecoming of a diabolist! Turn in your tome and your profane effigy! Maaaan… and I thought you were cool…”

“I can tell I’ve disappointed you… somehow, and I apologize for that… I guess I still don’t really understand what you wanted me to do.”

“Can you at least tell me the names of your spells? Rituals? Blasphemous incantations?”

She was somewhat flattered that he was so interested in any names she may have procured. Yet, still she had nothing to offer. “I’ve used so many spells that I couldn’t even count them all, much less name them.”

Odin took a step back in obvious shock, arm bent and raised near his face. He looked at her in quiet disbelief, his lips moving in silent words.

“What? What is it now?”

“…Couldn’t even count them? That is… impressive. It’s the casual attitude towards death that I would expect from a fellow shadow dweller. Wait… does this mean… that you were the true avatar of annihilation all along…?”

_Impressive._

Nyx got up from the rock, dusting off her cold bottom, and tried to ignore the tickling in her chest lest it turn into another inappropriate fit of laughing. “I’m… going to go now.”

Odin walked her back to her tent, but wouldn’t let her enter until she promised to allow him to teach her the “fine art of bestowing names” in the future.

 

 

“Heya Nyx! Here’s your book back. Mind if we share a some lemonade? I made it this morning.” In one hand Mozu held out a book Nyx had recently lent her. In the other was a pitcher sweating off condensation and two small cups.

Since Nyx had lent her the first book, Mozu had been coming back for more. Even with all her chores around camp, Mozu was now finishing at least one every week. And now Nyx had another client too; Mozu admitted to telling Kaze where she’d been getting all her reading material. Kaze seemed to be enjoying what Nyx had been picking out for him. Maybe she had a knack for choosing books for other people. 

Nyx took the book and patted the ground beside her. She had a blanket spread out on the grass and had been spending the late morning reading a book. She wasn’t sure how the lemonade would taste so soon after her morning cup of coffee, but how could she refuse?

“Mozu, what happened? You’re all dirty.” Mozu’s boots were covered in half-caked on mud, and her hands were only marginally better. Nyx took a second glance at the returned book, but amazingly it was in perfect condition.

“Oh shoot, sorry I hope I don’t get your blanket all a mess… I was out planting some trees this morning. With Laslow, actually.”

“Laslow?” Nyx didn’t think Laslow was the kind of guy who was into gardening.

“Yeah, turns out he’s actually pretty sweet when he’s not trying to flirt so hard. He’s actually pretty cool.”

 _Cool._ “Umm, yeah, I guess so.” There was nothing repulsive about him, to be sure, although he did come across as a little bit desperate for the attention of the ladies. Once that was out of the way however, Nyx supposed he was nice enough. When in the company of the overly enthusiastic Odin and the particularly sour Selena he just didn’t stand out much in comparison.

Mozu poured them each a glass of lemonade. “It’s the funniest story… I was coming back from the field one day and I found him… tied to a tree! Like some kind of scarecrow or somethin’.” Mozu laughed. “I mean I suppose it wasn’t very funny at the time –someone stole his coin purse and everything, but he’s been helping me out ever since I cut him down. Isn’t that nice?”

“Yes, I suppose it is.” Nyx thought for a second. “Say, why don’t you sit with us more often?” Nyx had somehow ended up eating with the trio during most of her meals now, and whoever else happened to come along, and she found she enjoyed the company. Usually. If Mozu was getting along so well with the swordsman, Nyx saw no reason for her friend not to join. How did the saying go, _the more the merrier?_

“Oh gosh, you sure? I dunno…”

Nyx found herself smiling. “Oh come on, everyone you talk to seems to like you. And if you think Selena doesn’t like you don’t worry too much –she doesn’t like anyone.”

Mozu started giggling mid-sip but then coughed and tried to control it. “If you say so. Say, I know I’ve been a bit of a baby about it, but how ‘bout we do some training this afternoon? I think we’re headed for another battle next week and I don’t want to be out of shape…”

“Actually… Odin, er, wanted to show me his collection.”

Mozu seemed a little bit surprised. Running into Odin had become a semi-regular thing, even outside of meal time, but this time she'd agreed to a proper meeting. “Collection? What’s he collecting?”

Nyx resisted the urge to rub her temples. “Knowing him? Probably everything.”

Mozu giggled again. Nyx wasn’t sure why Mozu would ever worry about being unliked –just her laugh was enough to get you to like her. “Oh okay then, if you say so! So long as you’re sure it's not _a date,_ hehe.”

Nyx knew it was a joke but felt her cheeks flare up anyways. “Oh please, you know it’s not like that.”

“Alright, if you say so! But he does seem pretty fond of you y’know. Always buying you an extra dessert and all… how’s the lemonade by the way?”

“Buying an extra dessert…? Wait, you mean all this time he’s been paying?” Odin’s “fell hand” had kept up its little trick for weeks now, but she’d always assumed he’d learned some thievery from Niles, or had otherwise coerced someone by using his associations with the prince.

In retrospect, the idea was ridiculous –she couldn’t imagine him doing either of those things.

“Oh of course! Whenever he sees me working behind the counter anyways.” Mozu leaned in to whisper. “Technically we aren’t supposed to be selling anything, but how could I say no to an extra dessert for my friend Nyx? Plus, then I can put the money into the castle funds to buy new kitchen ingredients for everyone.”

Nyx couldn’t think of anything further to say. “The lemonade was good Mozu, thank you.”

 

 

“Welcome to my abode!” Odin swung open the heavy wooden door. Unlike most of the army, retainers had rooms within the main stone building, along with the royalty (except for Corrin… she slept in a tree. Nyx was really hoping to hear _that_ story one day).

Nyx walked inside. It was pretty spacious; a large four-poster bed was off to one side, placed with the backboard against the stone wall. The adjacent wall had a decent sized window, with the curtains swept aside to let in the light. There was a large wooden armoire in the corner. It was the other two walls that really caught Nyx’s eye however. Every conceivable space was occupied by some sort of shelf, ledge, drawer or cabinet, and every inch was covered with anything imaginable. This was no doubt his “collection”. A folded expanse of fabric, a large and gaudy necklace (“amulet”, Odin would probably call it), shiny crystals, a scary doll, a sheath of a sword… almost anything you could imagine was fitted somewhere on Odin’s shelves.

She couldn’t help but gasp. She felt a magical presence here. It surprised her –she’d assumed most of Odin’s things would be useless.

“I know, I know. It’s impressive isn’t it?” He led her further inside. “As promised, not only will I show you some of the many items in my collection, but I will also share with you their powerful names.” He then shrugged lightheartedly. “Then, you can give it a try too!”

She doubted she would have any desire to do so, but she nodded slightly anyways, still somewhat preoccupied by the essence she was feeling. It seemed to be coming from one shelf in particular, on the wall opposite the bed.

“Do you have trouble finding places to put everything?” If she was honest, she was surprised he hadn’t started piling things on the floor. Although the shelves were filled to capacity, the floor was essentially immaculate.

“Honestly? Yeah… I’d been meaning to try and get rid of some of it but… once you name something it just becomes so hard to not grow attached, you know?”

Nyx couldn’t fathom being attached to so many random bits and bobbles but nodded anyways. She walked closer to the shelf she was sure must contain the magic she was feeling. “If you want some help, I can tell you which items are truly worth keeping; I’m pretty good at feeling that sort of thing.” She turned her head towards him, still a few feet behind he in the center of the room. He looked slightly conflicted. “… if you can handle me being honest, that is. Otherwise I have no obligations against sitting quietly and just observing.”

“… No no, you’re probably right. Selena’s been telling me I have way too many things. Jakob nearly loses it every time he comes in here to dust too…” He stood beside her. “I take it you want to start with this shelf?”

Nyx nodded.

Odin reached up and grabbed the leftmost item from his shelf –a tortoise shell. It had a bit of a metallic sheen on it and was rather nice to look at, but Nyx could tell it was just that –a tortoise shell.

“ _’Calamity Carapace’_ , I’ve never done it, but I’m sure any herbs crushed within its confines would –“

“Useless.”

Odin looked back at the shell in his hands as if to confirm her statement. “Oh. Are you sure?”

“Positive. It came from just a regular box tortoise I’m afraid.”

“Right. Okay.” He put it down on the floor near his feet. Instead, he picked up the folded fabric she’d noticed earlier. He unfolded it to its full length; a perfect square which was as wide as his entire arm-span and reached his toes. “ _’Shroud of the Ethereal Mystic’_!” She heard him from behind the heavy cloth. “It’s impervious to wyvern claws. Or at least, that’s what the shopkeeper told me.”

“He was lying.” She stretched her arm out further, fingers extended, just to make sure. There were no magical properties associated with this cloth. “I’m sure someone could make a very nice outfit from it though?”

“Right.” He put it down next to the shell.

She eyes the shelf full of other bits and bobs. It could be quite a while before she found what she was sensing. She hoped it wouldn’t be too long –for both their sakes.

Most of the things, although uniquely names as promised, did not have any useful properties. It seemed each item seemed to deflate Odin a little bit more, the pile on the floor slowly growing bigger. There were a few interesting things; the sheath had belonged to a powerful sword (although the sword itself was not within the collection), and there was an interesting timepiece which looked like a regular clock (although showing the wrong time) but she could sense some magical properties about it. There were two stones which could somehow communicate; when magic was applied to one, the other would softly glow. A poisonous ring.

Halfway through the shelf Odin seemed to finally give up. He sighed and raised his arms. “Okay, I think you get it for the naming thing.”

“They were all very interesting names,” Nyx affirmed from her spot, now seated cross-legged on the floor, hoping to lighten his mood a little bit.

“If we actually want to be productive with this cleaning-out thing, maybe it’ll just be easier if you just point to the things which _are_ magical.”

Nyx got up immediately. “I’d love to.” She walked up to the shelf, ignoring the pins and needles in her legs. She raised her arm just high enough to sense the objects at the top. She moved it slowly across as she walked, knowing there was something interesting here. She stopped at a pane of glass, which Odin picked up, then kept going. Finally, at the very end of the shelf sat an urn. The magic inside was so powerful, she gasped for a second time and moved her hand back. It almost hurt. She brought her hand back up again, her fingertips just centimeters from touching the urn itself. Whatever was inside was so powerful, she could sense it’s exact shape; roughly circular and the size of a walnut.

“This. _This,_ Odin. What’s in here?”

She turned her head, hand still grasping the aura of the circular object within. He looked visibly uneasy. His grumpiness from moments before was gone. He had been surprisingly quiet. “If I told you my mother’s ashes, would you believe me?”

Usually so open, she was surprised at his reluctance. “I would not. Whatever it is, it’s so strong I can almost see it with my hand,” she tried to explain. Not everyone was able to sense magical artifacts so it was a bit of a challenge to explain to someone unfamiliar with the concept. “It’s a stone of some kind. Maybe a crystal. Round. Partially translucent.” She put her hand down, suddenly feeling like she was invading his privacy. “What does it _do_?”

There was something else too; the magic felt like the magic she felt around Odin, Laslow and Selena. But she felt like she may have already said too much.

“I… it doesn’t have a name.” He sounded almost sorry.

“But I thought you named everything?”

“This one isn’t exactly mine to name.”

They stood looking at each other for a few moments. “Nyx, I’m sorry—“

“Let’s go get something put all these other things in, what do you say? I’ll even help you find something to do with all of them later, if you like.” Nyx had the unsettling feeling she accidentally stumbled on something deeply personal. _Personal_ was not her strong suit. If it wasn’t for the shape, she’d almost believe Odin if he’d said it really was his mother’s ashes inside the urn.

Odin smiled appreciatively. “I’ll get Jakob to get us a box. But jeez, it might take us until after the war to sort all this stuff… This is only one shelf too, haha…”

“Then it looks like I’ll have to stick around with you after the war, if need be.”

“Ha… if you stick around that long, I might have to tell you after all…”


	2. Middle

Becoming friends with Odin inevitably brought more people into Nyx’s life. Niles, Nyx could tolerate because he’d likely saved her life that one day on the battlefield. Laslow, Nyx could tolerate because he was more-or-less inoffensive and Mozu seemed rather taken by him. Selena on the other hand, Nyx was having a hard time tolerating.

Selena was the kind of woman who was never happy with anything. Except she didn’t just stop there, she appeared to be _un_ happy with _every_ thing. The reason Nyx could endure her in short bursts –mostly during meals –was because her complaints were not directed in any way towards her. She would complain about the food, some person who wasn’t sitting with them, the weather… literally anything could be the subject of Selena’s criticisms. Another reason was because she was, for whatever reason, on good terms with both Odin and Laslow. From what she’d gathered, the three of them appeared to have grown up together, sometime before they joined the royalty of Nohr as retainers. Although Nyx probably could have guessed at their connection from the magical energy all three of them seemed to radiate.

So when Nyx carried her lunch tray to her regular table and saw only Selena seated there, she inwardly groaned. She had been a little bit late to lunch since she’d been helping Mozu in the gardens, and it looked like Selena was the only one of their semi-regular group still there. Today, Selena appeared to glaring at her with more than the usual amount of daggers.

“Good afternoon. How is the soup today?”

As if mocking her attempt at small-talk, Selena immediately went on the offensive. “Look, I’m not going to beat around the bush. I don’t know what your deal is or what your intentions are, but you’d better leave him alone.”

Nyx was momentarily stunned by her blatant comment before she blinked her eyes and her brow furrowed in anger. There was little doubt who Selena was referring to. “Excuse me? I wasn’t aware I was causing any trouble by making friends.” Nyx wondered if the other woman’s outrage was prompted, or if she was simply waiting for the two of them to be alone.

Selena scoffed. “Friends? I’ve heard your story –clearly more than Odin has. You don’t strike me as the type of person to run around making friends.”

Nyx was done being tolerable. “And you don’t seem the type capable of _having_ friends and yet here you are.”

There was a moment where Nyx was able to derive some pleasure from Selena’s shocked and angry expression, before it was again hidden by a metal spoon and loud slurping. The expression revealed after was more controlled and sober. “Look, I’m not dumb. If I was stuck in the body of a teenager for decades I’d also be pretty desperate to get my hands on any time-altering magics I could. But I won’t let you take advantage of my friend like that. And I definitely won’t be letting you anywhere near _that_ again.”

Nyx’s anger flared. She had a pretty good idea what _that_ was. After helping Odin out yesterday, she’d been puzzling over the object constantly. She had no ill-intent; she knew better to snoop into other people’s business and personal matters (and it did seem like an oddly personal matter to Odin, and perhaps Selena too). However, the fact that it was a time-effecting object –which Selena unwittingly revealed –was news to her. She felt her pulse quicken, and she hoped her heightened interest did not show on her face.

“Look, whatever _that_ is, it surely isn’t any of my business. But don’t you dare accuse me of being _fake_ with anyone.”

 “O-oh! Ah, maybe I should sit somewhere else…”

Nyx and Selena turned their heads in unison to see a very anxious Mozu standing at the end of the table with her lunch tray held in her shaky arms.

“It’s okay, I was just leaving.” Selena got up, taking her tray with her. She gave Nyx one more deadly glare over her shoulder before taking her leave.

Mozu sat across from Nyx, a question on her face.

“Sorry you had to hear that, Mozu.”

“It’s okay. Just remember, Selena doesn’t like _anyone_.” Mozu gave her a weak smile as she started on her soup.

 

 

The hot hum of the summer afternoon was interrupted by the faint sounds of someone calling her name. Nyx, protected from the blunt force of the sun from beneath a full-limbed old tree, looked up from her book in time to see Odin running down the hill to meet her. He was waving enthusiastically, something tucked beneath his other arm.

“My darkest Nyx, I have crafted a special tome, especially for you.” He held the large, brightly coloured book in his arms and gesticulated for emphasis. Although he ran down there to meet her, he seemed almost embarrassed. His cheeks were pink, but she knew he was not affected by the heat the same way she, in her small pale body seemed to be.

“Oh?” Perhaps this was thanks for her helping him clean out a bit of his room the other day. Odin was lucky the army was apparently full of hoarders (mostly Keaton) willing to take some of his “treasures” off his hands. It had only been one shelf, but they’d made tentative plans to try and do one a week –time permitting. Her incentive? He offered to keep her collection of books safe in his room once they were through. “I’ll need to put _something_ on these shelves, or else I’ll just be tempted to fill them up again,” Odin had justified.

He got on his knees to be more level with her sitting height, and held his arms out straight with the book held out to her. “This is ‘ _Eternal Frost Aurasphere’_ , a tome I created with your very persona in my mind’s eye, chilling and desolate as your presence, yet as forceful and beautiful as—“

“—Thank you very much Odin. This is quite thoughtful.” She took the book from his hands as he looked up and watched her hopefully. It appeared to be a slightly upgraded blizzard tome. Odin’s craftsmanship seemed average, but she could tell it was still quite usable. What really caught her eye were the apparent decorations which adorned the hard blue leather cover; spirals and other shapes seemed to be drawn on intricately in glitter, with a few choice pieces of what appeared to be polished quartz decorating specific regions. She found herself smiling, truly, at the ridiculousness of it.

Odin seemed to take it as a positive sign. He clapped his hands together. “So you like it! I am so glad, no, _honoured_ , that I could be the first to add a named weapon to your mythical arsenal. Now! You must try it out!”

“ _Now?”_

He grabbed her wrist lightly and stood back up, jostling her up with him, her other book falling from her lap to the soft grass in the process.

“Nyx! Show me the power this weapon can deal in your fell hands! Do the honour of showcasing your strength!” He spread his arms, gesturing, she assumed, at the wide and unexpecting field before them.

She held the tome in her hands, the coolness of the ice magics chilling her fingertips. She supposed she could humour him. Nyx closed her eyes and whispered, “Blizzard”. She was surprised when the chill in her hands increased but no spell seemed to precipitate. She looked up quizzically at her friend.

“Haha! An amateur mistake. You must call it by its name: Eternal Frost Aurasphere!” His hand made an accompanying gesture which she wondered if he’d practiced earlier especially for the occasion. “Also, I personally feel these magics prefer having their names _yelled_ … but that’s up to you.”

He was watching her expectantly, smirking as if to dare her. She felt the obtrusively long title leave her lips: “Eternal Frost Aurasphere”.

Magic burst from her outstretched hand into a wide cone shape in front of her. Although she had not concentrated the force to do damage, as she would if there had been an enemy, she was still surprised at the amount of snow and cold which was emitted from her palm. How had he managed to craft something which held the specific requirement of having its given name? It was equal parts impressive and useless –she had not known it was possible to craft such a requirement onto any object.

Beside her, Odin laughed delightedly and clapped her back. “Again, again!”

She smiled. “Eternal Frost Aurasphere!”

Like Odin had predicted, the more enthusiastic calling caused more snow to burst from her palm in a dizzyingly beautiful blizzard, which dusted then blanked the bright green summer grass, creating a mini patch of winter.

Odin ran to it, spun about and plopped down on his back. “Nyx, your prowess changes the seasons themselves! You have turned the season from summer to winter! You have accomplished what only the sun and the earth and the powerful movements of the universe can do, you’ve –“

“ETERNAL FROST AURASPHERE!”

Nyx giggled wickedly as only Odin’s outstretched hand remained poked out of the freshly fallen snow. But then,

“Odin’s Icy Blanket of Eternal Slumber!” He emerged all at once, snow sticking to his person, and closed the handful of feet between them, picking her up easily in his freezing arms. She couldn’t help but shriek in shock, momentarily forgetting how much she hated the sound of her shrill girlish voice, as she was tossed gently into the blanket of snow.

“Come at me, master of the elements!” He stood next to her, looking down at her triumphantly, clumps of snow comically sticking to his blond hair.

She smirked and began maneuvering the snow in her hands, forming an “aurasphere” of her own to launch in a counterattack.

She could not remember the last time magic had felt “fun”.

Later, as they lay in the sopping grass, the snow having finally melted in the hot sun, Nyx found herself asking a question usually directed at herself. “Odin, how _old_ are you?”

It was asked half in jest, but when he didn’t immediately respond, she turned her head and saw an introspective expression on his face, glimpsed between the blades of grass tickling her cheeks.

“My darkest and dearest spectre, age is but a number given to those who walk the linear path of time. But I think it is obvious that those trusted with great power such as we have left the path and forged our own convoluted way.”

She tried to make sense of his response. “… Who told you?” Odin was one of the few people not to have yet commented about her age. She realized then that a part of her was hoping he’d never find out. Odin talked about “darkness” and the like often, but what did he think about someone who actually committed something most would consider truly malicious?

“ _’In her youth, she used a forbidden spell… killing most of a village in one fell swoop. The spell stole the victims’ life energy for her, and she hasn’t physically aged since_.’”

“…Was is Selena?”

Odin actually looked surprised. “Yeah, actually.”

Since their confrontation in the mess hall, Selena, as if reveling in the annoyance it seemed to cause her, seemed to do everything in her power to have Nyx in her line of sight. It felt eerily similar to being spied on by an overprotective parent –except she supposed in this case, Odin was the child and Nyx was the potential danger.

Odin must have caught something in her expression. He sat up. “What’s wrong? Your origin story, your attitude –you are the true avatar of annihilation here! Compared to you, I’m a dark dilettante at best! A complete fraud at worst… If only my past was as tragic as yours…”

“There’s nothing in my past to envy Odin.”

Odin’s gaze seemed to focus on some unspecific point in the distance, uncharacteristically solemn. “But at least people take you seriously.”

This wasn’t childish fantasy –Nyx had murdered out of recklessness, something she was still paying the price for. “Death of innocents isn’t worth prestige. It took me a while to learn that.”

“…”

“Odin, have you considered that this ‘darkness’ you seem to strive for isn’t quite as nice as you believe? You say we’re similar but… your nature, your personality, is much different than my own. You seem… happy. Don’t lose that, Odin.”

Back when she really was 16, she’d felt feared and alone, shunned by the people who should have loved her. If they already thought she was a monster, she thought she may as well _be_ a monster. But when she was done, she really was alone.

“For what it’s worth, I want you to be happy. I’m sure you’ve lived a lifetime or more paying back your actions. Start fresh. Not everyone has the chance to live a second lifetime.”

“I’m sure I have a third and even a fourth waiting for me,” Nyx joked bitterly. “Truth be told, I actually envy you.”

“What? Why?”

“I don’t understand everything you say, but I can see the passion behind it. And it looks to me like following that passion actually brings you happiness. Am I right?”

“Well… yes.”

“I would give literally anything to feel that. Eternal youth is also eternal stagnation. I haven’t passionate about anything in so long…”

Odin was looking at her with such a heartbroken expression, she actually wondered if maybe she’d said too much. Perhaps she was being too honest. Odin always seemed to wear his heart on his sleeve –Nyx sometimes wasn’t even sure if she still had a heart at all.

“What I’m saying is you’re fine the way you are. Don’t be hung up on people taking you seriously, or being something you’re not. Just… go on being Odin.”

“T-thank you.”

“Anytime.”

 

 

Nyx stared incredulously at the small piece of paper in her hand.

_Meet me under the cover of darkness (6 am) outside my bedroom window. Bring your most powerful and ominous tomes…!_

_-O. Dark_

It was delivered to her by Niles while she and Mozu were walking back to their tents that evening. Niles was smirking at her, as if daring her to react. For that very reason, she kept her face composed as she folded the note and put it in her pocket.

Niles apparently, needed no provocation.

“What’s this all about? Ominous messages delivered at late hours? My my, is Odin planning to _give you some passion_? He seemed quite distraught to discover you lacking. Sounds scandalous.”

“Oh my!”

Nyx gave Niles a hearty smack on the shoulder with the tome she was carrying. _Thwack._ He flinched but kept his aggravating smirk. “Ignore him, Mozu.” Deciding she had enough with this perverted man, she continued decisively in the direction of her tent.

“Make sure you two keep it down!” Niles called after her. “Odin tends to get quite vocal when he’s in _throes of passion_.”

 

 

She knew she probably should have said no to his ridiculous request, but still Nyx found herself standing outside the stone building, below what she hoped was Odin’s window. Although the days were still hot, the sun wasn’t quite up yet and the air had a bit of a chill. Along with a few tomes, Nyx had also brought some coffee for them to share, and its heat was visibly condensing in the chilly air.

She turned her gaze upwards when she heard the window slide open. Odin gave her a quick wave before throwing a large pillow on the ground directly below the window. “Cover me!”

She had only half a moment to panic stupidly, her hands full, and wondering how on earth he was expecting her to cover his fall –he was nearly twice her size!

He lowered himself slowly until he was dangling from the ledge with his hands before lightly letting go –landing surprisingly steadily on his feet. The pillow was probably unnecessary.

Annoyed at having been momentarily worked up, Nyx asked, “So what on earth is this about? Why not use the front doors like a civilized human being? Do you do this often??”

“Shhh! Because this is more exciting, no?” He grabbed the pillow, walked back a bit and flung it upwards and towards the window. It hit the sill, then flopped back down to the ground. “Besides, uh, I don’t think Selena would be happy to see me training alone with you…”

“Tsk. Here, hold this.” She flung the coffee into his arms. Calling upon her magics, she lifted the pillow into the air, then neatly passed it through the window. “Training?”

He grabbed at the back of his head with his free hand. “Oh shoot, I forgot to mention that didn’t I… I mean, if you don’t mind? This smells delicious by the way!” He put his face directly over the container and took another whiff. “Coffee truly is the darkest of beverages!”

Nyx sighed. “Well let’s go then.” She would have to cancel on Reina today. “Next time please just come ask me in person? You know where my tent is. And maybe we can go a bit later during the day?”

“Ah… about that. I’d rather less people saw, if possible.”

“Selena?”

“Yes? And no. Umm… it’s just. A bit embarrassing.”

She tried her best to keep up with his long stride. The castle grounds were still remarkably quiet –not many were up this early. “You’re embarrassed? Why?”

Odin looked around quickly, as if to check they were not being overheard. “You’re very honest Nyx. And I… my magic could really use some work I think. And I could think of no one more suited to the task than you, the infamous dark mage, who—“

“—Odin.”

“I just suspect you, more than others, would have some criticisms on my technique. And my dignity, my hideous, monstrous and looming dignity, may be mortally wounded if someone else found out that I may be less talented than I claim.”

Nyx was both impressed at the maturity Odin seemed to have in admitting this, and relieved that he’d brought it up. She had been meaning on bringing it up but was unsure of the most polite way to approach it.

“I realize this may be a bit late, but you know lying is not a generally acceptable way of increasing your apparent skill.”

“Exaggerating! Lying sounds so harsh… and that’s exactly why I need your help. I don’t want to die, Nyx.”

Nyx wondered how she ended up entrusted with this child. But guilt was already all too familiar, and if Odin were to die, after this conversation she knew she would feel at least somewhat responsible. And he was right –he was truly mediocre in the magical arts at best. She wondered how he had managed to become the Prince’s retainer –truly Leo would be able to judge the skill of magics?

“Okay Odin, I’ll help you out. But I have a few conditions; first, we aren’t going to have you climbing out of windows anymore. If Selena’s on your case, I’ll take care of it. Second, no more secrets, alright? No more surprise ‘hey Nyx, been lying (--“Exaggerating!”) about my magical prowess and need your help not dying.’”

“But Nyx, I can’t—“

“Those are my conditions. Don’t worry, I’m not going to turn around and interrogate you. But if I ever feel like anything needs an answer and I take the liberty of asking –no lies.” Nyx knew there were things Odin wasn’t sharing with her, perhaps related to the crystal in his room, perhaps not. A selfish part of her now felt compelled to learn more about it, now that Selena implied it could lift her curse. But she, of course, wasn’t in a rush. If Nyx had an abundance of anything, it was time.

They were outside the training field now. To be honest, Nyx wasn’t sure if magic could really be _taught_. But she’d try. If there was any task she was suited for, it was this. Odin was biting his lip, clearly in some reluctance to accept her terms. Finally he extended his hand. “Fine. Let’s shake on it.”

Nyx shook Odin’s hand, still not used to the sensation of the magical energy ghosting over her skin whenever they touched.

 

 

“Laslow, what’s Selena’s problem?”

Across from her at the little table of the dimly lit café, Laslow looked like he’d just bitten his tongue. Impressive, considering they were just drinking tea.

It was a bit of a nasty trick, finally agreeing to tea just to allow herself the opportunity the corner Laslow about the woman who’d been antagonizing her for the past few days. Although, Nyx reasoned with herself, she found it at least partially her responsibility to make sure Laslow was a decent fellow, considering how close he and Mozu have gotten. She wouldn’t be able to forgive herself if her friend ended up getting overly… _emotionally attached_ to someone who turned out to be a rotten egg.

Laslow pulled at his high collar, clearly agitated. “Goodness Nyx, wouldn’t you rather talk about the weather? Or our hobbies?”

Just as Odin had alluded to on their first day of training, Selena seemed be on the lookout. Her techniques were childish at best, but Nyx was not immune. Selena found a reason to linger in Odin’s room last time Nyx spent an afternoon helping him clear out another one of his shelves, and she didn’t even have the decency to offer to help. The urn wasn’t even in Odin’s room anymore; Nyx didn’t understand what Selena was hoping to achieve. The magic training, which after the first session Nyx confirmed was desperately needed, was also complicated to plan since Odin insisted on using the grounds when they were vacant, but Selena’s room was right down the hall from Odin’s and she’d been having a tendency to leave her door open lately.

If was infantile, it was annoying, and Odin was a grown man for heaven’s sake, who was Selena to babysit him?

So plan B was Laslow. Being the third person in camp to share the mysterious magical energy, she was hoping he’d have some answers

“After. It has come to my attention that Selena seems to dislike me in particular and I want to know why.” Nyx sighed, letting some of her real frustration through. “The army is full of thieves and outlaws and yet she seems to watch me like I’m about to…” she tossed her hands as she tried to come up with the right words, “… go crazy.”

“Selena is… protective.”

“I already told her, I’m not after whatever Odin was keeping hidden in his room.” Nyx could see Laslow’s eyes snap to attention. “Believe it or not I was _actually_ just hanging out with Odin and hearing his… names.” She figured he probably didn’t get very many visitors. The thought was a little bit sad.

“That’s uh, not exactly what I meant. Although you seem to know more than I’ve given you credit for, and that is almost certainly a valid point. Err, forgive me.” Laslow took a sip of his tea, seeming to contemplate his next words. “I don’t think Selena’s used to someone being so receptive to Odin’s attention. Or well… she’s not used to Odin being this interested in someone before.”

“I don’t know how this relates to _me.”_

Laslow sighed. “I guess it’s sort of the same reason you probably asked me out for tea –the _other_ reason, anyways. If you’d heard I was an immortal murderer –forgive me for being literal –do you not think you’d be more wary of me spending time with Mozu?”

“… I think I’d prefer if Selena just asked me out for tea.”

He laughed. “I wouldn’t be too hard on Selena. She really does care a lot about Odin. They’re quite similar actually –where Odin wants people to take him seriously and achieves the opposite, Selena constantly strives for perfection, only to constantly reveal her own flaws of character.”

Nyx decided she may have underestimated the swordsman. His overtly flirtatious attitude belied a surprising wisdom and judge of character.

Nyx figured she got as much as she would get about Selena out of the man, and decided to move on to other matters. “So, about our hobbies: I hear you like planting trees, Laslow?” Nyx smirked behind her teacup.

 

 

“Okay okay, Arthur next!” Mozu was seated on a green plush pillow in Orochi’s spacious tent. Mozu, Reina, Orochi and Nyx had gotten into the habit of getting together once a week for drinks and cards. Somehow tonight Nyx and Orochi had gotten into a competition to see who could make the most accurate predictions for their comrades for the next week. Nyx would normally decline such a frivolous activity, but Orochi was always so quick to refill her cup with some liquor from her cabinet.

“That’s not fair!” Orochi complained. “Even Reina could predict some terrible bad luck for Arthur. You don’t even need to know magic to do that.”

Reina guffawed and took another sip of her sake. “Okay good point. Okay Nyx, how about Selena then?”

“Oh no you guys, don’t tempt her –she might end up putting a curse on her instead!” Mozu giggled at her own joke.

“Ohohoho, something has you in a tizzy, Nyxie-poo?” Like an insect to a honey, Orochi seemed to be drawn to gossip.

Nyx closed her eyes. “Don’t get excited. She’s just been… annoying. I just need to find something to distract her, that’s all.”

“Men.” Reina said solemnly from her own cushion.

“Men?”

“Nothing distracts a young woman like a handsome young man.”

“What, are you saying I play _matchmaker_?”

Orochi threw her cards down on the floor, apparently more interested in the current conversation than divination. “So? Corrin does it all the time!”

“What?”

Orochi laughed. “What, you think it’s just a coincidence we all get paired up on the battlefield? I need to come up with a polite way to tell her I won’t be falling in love with Hayato anytime soon –I’m almost 10 years older than him!”

Nyx scoffed. “Yeah… wonder how that must feel.”

There was a moment where the three others tried to make sense of what Nyx meant and when they did Orochi and Mozu immediately looked apologetic, and Reina started laughing.

“You say it girl!” Reina laughed and took another sip of her sake.

“ _Speaking_ of Corrin,” Orochi piped in, “guess who’s got a bun in the oven?”

Corrin was pregnant? Nyx finally threw down her own cards, exasperated. “We’re in the middle of war!”

“So? You wanna tell her what to do? Knowing her she’s probably got a trick up those dragon sleeves of hers.”

They all sat quietly a few moments, digesting the information. Maybe Nyx had just been isolated from domesticity for so long her opinion was moot, but she hardly thought war was the appropriate time to build a family.

“What about Subaki?” Orochi asked, breaking the silence. “If Selena strives for perfection, I assure you she won’t be disappointed. I hear his ego is as big as his—“

“Orochi!” Mozu shrieked, and the conversation devolved into inebriated giggles.

 

 

Nyx tried to hide a smile behind a book as she saw Subaki approach. Conveniently for her, she’d introduced Subaki to coffee a few weeks ago, and she knew it was only a matter of time before he’d come visiting again, asking for more.

“Ah Nyx, good morning! So nice to see you not wandering the camp all alone anymore.” Subaki gave a ridiculously cheery wink as he approached her tent. What he said was true, although Nyx was just enjoying her morning coffee, both Mozu and Kaze apparently thought this a good morning to pay her a visit and pick out some new books.

What she hadn’t expected was for him to be bringing her coffee, which is exactly what he appeared to put into her lap.

“What’s this?” she asked, although she was almost certain it was ground coffee beans. How he would manage to reverse-engineer something like this after only one taste was beyond her though.

“Coffee. I made it myself. Would you like to try it?”

“Coffee, eh? Watch out, once you start with that Nohrian stuff, you can’t stop. Now that I’ve started, I’m even willing to seek out Jakob’s company --if he’s willing to brew me a pot.” Kaze said, still sitting cross-legged and flipping through a book.

Nyx pretended to consider the coffee in her lap. “Maybe. But in return I have a request…”

 

 

Nyx walked into the castle, two puddings in hand and Selena nowhere in sight. She tapped on Odin’s door with her foot.

A voice from the other side loomed. “Who dare call upon Odin Dark??”

She felt a smile tickle her lips. “Odin. You know it’s me.”

He opened the door. “Yeah, I know. But I wish you’d use the secret knock I showed you… Oh, what’s this?”

She stepped inside and handed him the little glass bowl and spoon. “Remember the first day we spoke? That rice was harvested the other day. Mozu is letting us have the first taste.”

As Mozu had predicted, Odin’s face lit up. “Nyx! This is… so thoughtful!”

Odin’s bed was currently covered in scrolls and open tomes (Odin was apparently working on a spell for Beruka; she knew she should probably help him but sometimes it’s best for people to learn through tremendous failure) so she plopped herself down on the carpet next to it. Odin joined her.

She clinked her bowl against his. “Cheers.”

“Cheers to what?”

For an alarming second, Nyx was tempted to say “to our friendship” but thankfully realized how ridiculously sentimental that would sound. “I don’t know… to Selena’s new boyfriend? To Corrin’s new baby? To the next shelf we’ll manage to empty today?”

Corrin had managed to fabricate a portal to a parallel realm, “a deeprealm”, simply for the purpose of speeding up her vulnerable pregnancy, and for the purposes of raising her child in relative safety. It was only a month ago she officially announced she would be having a child, and due to the altered time in the realms, Sophie was already born and Corrin was back to leading the army.

It was the controversial talk of the whole encampment. Opinions ranged from praise to scorn; although the latter, like Nyx, knew better than to be too open about their thoughts. On one hand, expecting someone to terminate an unplanned pregnancy because the timing wasn’t convenient was harsh, but at the same time, offloading the responsibilities that come with raising a child to some alternate dimension were questionable, especially when the difference in passing time made it impossible for the mother to properly raise her child. Nyx knew these kids would grow up much too quickly, and without proper parental figures.

Odin took a bite and sucked on his spoon thoughtfully. “Yes, no, and yes. I can’t help but feel bad for the little princess. How did the time work in the deeprealms again? One month equals one year? I feel like she will grow up hardly knowing her mother. It sets a bad precedent.”

Nyx nodded, pleased that Odin seemed to share her sentiment. She knew, inevitably, if the war was to continue, more children may be given to deeprealms to experience their childhood in safety… and solitude.

 “What would happen if _you_ were to go into one of the deeprealms?”

Nyx had considered this before. “I suppose I could go in for as long as I wished and return here apparently unchanged. The reason people would chose to limit their time there is because it is expensive on the longevity. That wouldn’t apply to me.”

They sat in silence a few moments, having finished their puddings. From somewhere in the castle, the sound of breaking glass was heard. Felicia must be cleaning.

“Have you ever thought about having kids?” Thankfully, Odin did not wait for her to answer this unexpected question. “It’s one thing to try and keep you child safe, as Corrin has, but it does nothing to guarantee her own safety. People don’t often think about what a child may have to go through if their parents were to die.”

“Did something happen to your parents, Odin?”

“Yes and no.”

“There’s no straight-forward answers with you, are there?”

“That would be too banal for the mysterious Odin Dark!”

 

 

As the war continued, their foes seemed to get more powerful. Magical attacks were not guaranteed to immobilize their enemies any longer. The stakes were higher now too; literally. In Valla, the landmasses had a tendency to float, and one unfortunate fall could send you into the vastness below.

Nyx knew Odin was in over his head before he did, but for once she wasn’t close enough to warn him. She saw him at a distance, hitting a heavily armoured enemy with a spell. Normally, this may have been enough to finish him, but now there was no way Odin would be able to finish him before he could counter attack.

She saw his magical attack hit. What may have before been enough to end the battle only caused the enemy to stumble slightly, before turning in Odin’s direction. “Odin!” she called, her voice hoarse as she ran. She saw the spear fly in his direction. She noticed something else, in the split second before it hit. Odin had reached towards his waist, where his hand hovered for an instant before he raised his arm again in a vain attempt to block the blow. The spear hit true –right into Odin’s side.

As she thought: Odin had never been a primary magic user. He was reaching for a weapon he no longer carried.

“Shit!” She swore under her breath. Thirty feet, twenty. Would she get there in time to save him? He wasn’t moving; he couldn’t defend himself against the next blow. Her sides burned, she couldn’t breathe.

“Haaah!” She expelled the last bit of her air as she flung a spell in his direction. Normally she wouldn’t attempt a hit from this far away, not trusting her accuracy, but she saw no other way.

Luck, if it existed, was on her side, and she saw the top-heavy soldier topple over. Finally closing the distance between her and Odin, she flung another spell in the soldier’s direction. He would never move again.

She looked over Odin’s body. She was having trouble seeing; she realized she was crying. She used one of her shaking hands to apply pressure to the wound, and the other to dig around her supplies for a vulnerary or _something_. She didn’t have anything.

She was going to sit here and watch her friend die.

“Odin why are you so stupid? Why would you rush a guardian… they have spears now –they can hit back! Was it worth it? Hih? Hey? Maybe if you weren’t so _stupid_ , you’d be able to answer me now!” She wanted to hit him. How dare he make her feel like this? She didn’t realize she was still capable of such levels of emotion. She hated it.

Then she remembered Odin’s trick. Heart hammering, she switched tomes and blasted a fire spell into the air. Her control was wavering; she’d been hoping for a small circular ball of flame. What she’d gotten was much larger and less defined.

“Subaki! Down below!”

Nyx had never been so happy to hear Selena’s petulant voice before. Her plan with Subaki had worked almost alarmingly well, and she hadn’t seen much of her for weeks. She looked up. Selena and Subaki were paired up, riding his Pegasus lower and lower, until it was low enough that Selena jumped off and sprinted to her.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Genuine concern was evident in her voice.

Subaki yelled from a few feet away, “Quick! Give him a vulnerary! And be careful! There might still be enemies nearby. I’m going to fly and find Elise or Sakura!”

“Nyx, tilt his head back.” She dug into one of her bags attached to her belt and pulled out a vial. She opened it aggressively, and tipped it so its contents trickled down Odin’s throat. She felt his wound reacting beneath her bloody hand, sealing itself as Odin coughed and sputtered into consciousness.

 

 

Nyx sat on a bench beside the training field, waiting for Odin to arrive. As usual, it was just after dawn, and no one was in sight. The changing weather made the grounds foggy, and Nyx sipped her coffee to help ease the chill on her skin.

Perhaps she was pushing too hard, not giving more than a day of rest to Odin after the incident in Valla. But then she remembered it was his deficiency in magic that got him in this position in the first place. She remembered her anguish when she thought there was no way she could save him. She hadn’t signed up for _that_ when she agreed to be his friend.

She spotted him coming through the fog, his yellow outfit clashing with the otherwise gloomy atmosphere. She walked over to meet him halfway. A lingering awkwardness was felt; the last time she saw him, being tended to by Elise, she still hadn’t felt like herself. She’d be damned if she ever let her emotions get the better of her again. And it seemed like Odin nearly dying was enough for her emotions to get the edge.

Now she felt the need to reassert herself. However, she was distracted by the colourful bouquet in his hand.

“What’s that?”

“Flowers?”

“Why.” She wondered if it was Laslow or Niles who planted this idea in his head.

“Because I made you upset?”

“Because you almost _died_! I should be the one giving you flowers.” The fog somehow managed to subdue the shrill tone of her words.

“No, not really. I mean… it is sort of my fault. Can we sit down?”

Nyx was confused, but she complied and returned to the bench, her spot still vaguely warm on her bottom.

“I haven’t been completely honest with you. And I guess that was part of the deal, wasn’t it?” He took a deep breath, his seriousness making Nyx nervous. “I _chose_ to do magic. I made that decision a few years ago, even though I knew I wasn’t very experienced. And I’m realizing now that decision may have been more than a little bit selfish. The other day it was me, but what if next time it was Lord Leo? Or you?”

Although not surprised, Nyx was confused. “What do you mean, selfish?”

“Using a blade again would just remind me of my past. I wanted to forget, for a while. Until everything was… over.” He put on a sardonic smile. “I used to think I was dealing with everything so much better than Selena and Laslow, but really I’m just the biggest faker out of all of us…”

For once, Nyx wished Odin would switch back to his theatrical speaking –this was borderline unsettling. He was somehow being more dramatic now than when he wasn’t trying.

“Remember when you told me to just be myself? I guess I’ve been doing a pretty terrible job. So uh, that’s why I got you the flowers. They didn’t have black –I checked.”

“It’s okay, I like purple,” Nyx muttered, taking the flowers and idly picking at them. If she could forget her past, would she? She knew the answer; such potions existed, but never had she considered taking one. “So I guess you have a dramatic past after all…?”

“You could say that.”

“Not so nice, is it?” Nyx wondered how it must be, to have a dark past that no one else knew about. She really could start over fresh. She could change her name, do something new. It was appealing. It was also childish, immature. But most people really were just children.

It was for this respect for privacy that deterred Nyx from asking what had happened in his past.

“Do you want to go out for breakfast this morning? Mozu has told me there’s this nice place in town.”

“But what about our training? I –the dark arts are calling me, I’ve disappointed them with my performance the other day! I must repent and—“

“I’m asking you out on a date, Odin.” She brought the lilacs up to her face, smelling their cloying scent.

Odin stood up quickly, knocking the coffee onto the ground in the process. He ignored it. “I-is this one of your dark tricks? Do not test the vulnerable heart of one who’s already been though tribulations!” His face had turned an impressive shade of red. She didn’t blame him for being sceptical. She was sceptical herself; maybe her assault of emotions on the battlefield had awakened other sentiments, even more unfamiliar to her than grief.

Odin Dark had grown on her, for better or for worse.

Nyx smiled, and extended her hand to him, which he hesitantly took and helped her to her feet. She held on when he attempted to let go. “Odin Dark, you should know now more than others that I, Nyx, am nothing if not honest. Deception of this magnitude would be distasteful. Now! Speak your answer!”

Odin closed the distance between them and captured her in a hug, knocking the air out of her. His mouth next to her ear, he answered, “I would love to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooo another one done! Took a bit longer than expected --I wanted to make sure I didn't accidentally write myself into a corner later. Again, comments and critique are welcome! Odin and Nyx are such difficult characters to write T_T


	3. End

Dust filtered through rays of sunshine coming through Odin’s wide windows. His room was looking more and more like that of someone getting ready to leave; his shelves and glass-panelled cabinets which used to house his mountains of oddities were now one-by-one becoming barren, there contents packed away into boxes or given away. It had been a few months since they’d started, but now they were finally starting to see the results of their effort. He’d stayed true to his word and hadn’t filled any of the cleared space back up –he still insisted she put her books there once everything was done.

Nyx had realized after the first few sessions that people’s stuff was deeply personal –whether intentionally or not, the possessions people chose to keep and the reasons they may have chosen to keep it were not trivial. Nyx had felt like she’d gotten to know Odin almost more through his possessions (and their names, which he still felt compelled to utter after they were thrown into the box once Nyx had checked for magical properties) as she had through their conversations, training, and meals which they now routinely shared together.

Odin was actually a surprisingly private person, masked under his persona of mystic heroism. He rarely mentioned his past or his future. It made Nyx feel like she had a companion who also chose to live only in the present –past too unfortunate to bring pleasant memories, and an uncertain future going on until forever.

Nyx felt the familiar tinge of magic on her fingertips as she emptied one of the drawers. “Odin, what’s this?” She held up a thin although surprisingly solid piece of metal, roughly the size of her palm and inscribed with an unusual design. There was a foreign quality to the magic she faintly felt, but there was also something familiar about it, which she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

They were both kneeling, each tackling a drawer of a large and dusty cabinet.

“I call it _Robin_.”

“Robin? Odin, that breaks all of your naming rules.” Nyx, regrettably, knew all of Odin’s naming rules. Two syllables made this one alarmingly short.

Odin took the strange emblem from Nyx, one hand wiping over the inscription almost fondly. “I know. It… reminds me of someone. Or… someplace. Sometime…?”

Nyx wondered where he found such an item. “You can feel the magic in this one?”

He swiped a thumb over the object, and seemed to consider the question for a moment. “No. It doesn’t feel like magic. Although my hand seems to tingle with what I can only describe as overwhelming nostalgia. Like some sort of vague and hazy memory, locked forever in this plate and out of reach…! And what is more powerful than memories, dearest Nyx?” His aside finished, he looked at her and smiled sheepishly. “I’m actually surprised _you_ could feel anything.”

She put her hands back on the object, brushing his fingers and making him startle.

“Odin I think this is a re-classing seal.” It didn’t look like the seals Corrin usually used, but that was the familiar sensation she was feeling –she was certain.

He looked up at her, eyes wide. Such items were valuable, especially now that the war had been raging as long as it had been. “Should I –I guess this means I should hand it in to Corrin?”

Nyx looked down and rubbed the object thoughtfully with her fingertips, noting how Odin’s grip had tightened. She figured the war could go on without one extra seal.

“I can keep a secret.”

 

 

 

Nyx relished the feeling of the hot water of the baths on her sore muscles. Yesterday they had a few kilometer hike through tall and prickly grass before they reached their target, and her skin felt like it was covered in hundreds of tiny cuts and scrapes. To most, thistles were not worth complaint, but magic user’s outfits tended to be less… protective than others.

Nyx felt his magical presence before she actually saw Odin step through the little wooden gate –she realized he would also be covered in cuts just like her. The steam must have made her hard to see, because Odin didn’t stop and consider another person in the baths until he went to put down his towel, and saw hers rolled up on the ground.

He turned in her direction and jumped slightly, covering his smalls with his bunched up towel and turning his head in the other direction. “Nyx! Apologies, this steam conceals even your menacing presence! I –I’m leaving!” His voice cracked on the last word.

She smiled. Would it be ill-spirited to admit how she liked seeing Odin flustered?

“Stay.”

“Stay?” He turned his head back in her direction, although his expression was hard to see through the steam.

“I don’t mind. You must be cut up just as bad as me, after all.”

He stood there considering for a moment before finally putting down his towel and gingerly stepping in, making sure to stay on the far side of the bath.

Nyx had been thinking, as she often did, about her condition. At this exact moment, she was wondering how it must feel to share a bath with someone if you had a beautiful woman’s body like Camilla or Orochi. Surely any men sharing _their_ baths wouldn’t stay meters away, dutifully averting their eyes, as Odin was doing now. But, as she often did now when such thoughts came to her head, her thoughts wandered again to the crystal artifact Odin and his two friends shared. Why they had use for it, and if it would really fix Nyx’s problem like Selena had suggested.

“Odin I have a favour to ask you.”

“Of course! How can I be of service?”

“I want my curse to be lifted.” It felt weird, stating her deepest desire so blatantly.

“Really? …Why?” Odin scooted himself a bit closer until she was able to see his face properly. He looked just as puzzled as he sounded.

“You know, Odin, you might be the only man at this camp who, upon hearing about my curse, did not offer any condolences or attempt to offer me any assistance.” She hadn’t thought much of it then, but in retrospect she appreciated the gesture. Instead of expressing concern over her condition, he had called her impressive, among other things. “Most people realize living forever means seeing everyone you care about die.” This actually, although she’d obviously been aware of the inconveniences of never aging, was a fact only truly appreciated by Nyx recently. Never before had she had people whom she cared about enough to consider how it would feel to watch them slowly age and die.

“I guess. But you know, you may still have to watch everyone you know die, even without a curse. That’s how life is sometimes…” He sighed, his breath parting the steam in front of him momentarily, allowing her to see his upset expression. “If you already asked Leo for help ( _she had_ ) I don’t know how much _I_ could do.” He leaned in an whispered, as though it was some grand secret, “I’m rubbish at making spells; I’m lucky Beruka is much nicer than she appears otherwise I’m sure I’d be on her hit list after my Gefühle Hersteller spell…”

Nyx chuckled. “That’s what you get for calling yourself ‘The High King of Hocus’. Don’t worry about it. At the very least I didn’t want you to keep this impression that I thought it was a blessing.”

They sat in a comfortable contemplative silence for a while, the sound of a soft dripping echoing in the baths.

“I’ve got it! I know how to fix your curse!”

She looked at him incredulously. He was already scooting closer, his face eager and excited. “What? Already?”

“Permission to enter your personal space?”

“Permission granted.”

With Odin she never knew what to expect. She definitely did not expect him to bring his head in and give her a quick but tangible kiss, the energy she usually felt on his skin magnified 10-fold against her lips until her heart was rampaging and she felt breathless. No, she didn’t expect that.

“Did it work? Do you feel the seconds of time, pulling you forever forward once again?”

“A kiss?? You thought a _kiss_ would fix my curse?”

He looked self-conscious. “Maybe? It always seemed to work in the fairy tales my mother used to read me…”

“Odin, I’ve been kissed before.”

“Ah yes, but have you ever been kissed by a _prince_?”

Admittedly no. Unfortunately for Nyx, physical desires could only be quenched in the past by adolescents who’d not yet reached manhood, or by particularly nasty men who –even not knowing of her curse –had have no qualms kissing someone who looked as young as she did. It was unsurprising that such pleasures lost their novelty quickly for her.

“You’re not a prince.”

“Admittedly, no. But maybe I _am_ the son of a princess? That’s only one degree of separation –basically fine-print.”

“Odin, are you saying –“

“Shh! The wind carries ears in its gusts, my dear Nyx! Besides, you told me the other day that you excel at keeping secrets, right?” He winked at her.

Odin, she decided, was far too much.

“Nyx? Are you okay? How long have you been in the bath? –Maybe you should get out soon, your face is all red…”

 

 

 

Life started happening quickly. Maybe Corrin had started a trend, or maybe everyone was just waiting for some sort of cue. It seemed as though every other week there was a subdued celebration in honour of the latest pair getting married. Last year Nyx didn’t have anyone who she would consider a friend, but just last week she’d been a maid of honour at Orochi and Hayato’s wedding.

She’d thought she’d lived more than anyone she knew, but maybe she’d been wrong.

Tonight, Nyx would be losing her favourite pig-tailed neighbor. Laslow, with his green thumb and easy smile, had finally proposed. They were officially getting married that afternoon in the little garden they had planted together. It was all so cute even Nyx felt her wizened heart flutter at the thought.

Mozu was pacing back in forth inside her nearly empty tent, makeup and dresses strewn about the floor, and Nyx kept trying to catch up with her to finish on the last details on her dress.

“Gosh Nyx, why is this sort of thing even necessary? We does everyone need to get all fancied up like this?” She’d finally stopped at one end of the large tent and Nyx finally thought she’d finished, but then she started stomping again in the other direction. “I don’t want everyone lookin’ at me, Nyx! Xander’s gonna be there, I can’t—“

“Mozu can you calm down for half a second so I can finish tying up your dress? Unless you want to add having your dress fall off to your list of concerns.”

Mozu froze, comically, breath held as Nyx finally finished tying all the little ties; the sturdy knot behind her neck, and a criss-cross of ties ending with a large bow at the base of her back. The dress was off-white and simple. On Mozu it looked beautiful.

Finally she let out her breath in a big gust. “Nyx, there’s gonna be _dancing_!”

“Laslow taught you how to dance.”

“I know but it’s different with a whole bunch ‘o people there! What if I forget? His mom was a _dancer_!”

Little bits of the trios puzzle were beginning to make themselves clear. Odin the royal, Laslow the son of a dancer. The other day at dinner Selena implied they weren’t even Nohrian at all –but at this point that wasn’t really a surprise. There were no unknown monarchs in Nohr, unless there was another hidden country on the other end of some other bottomless gorge. “Did Laslow love you before he taught you how to dance?”

“Well, yeah, I s’ppose but—“

“Then he won’t care if you dance all over his toes all night. I promise.” She decided not to mention that knowing Laslow, he would be just as uncomfortable with the attention as she. They really were a good match.

“I guess…”

Nyx had an idea. “You know, I’ve never learned how to dance. Do you think you could teach me?”

“Now??” There was less than an hour before the ceremony. Her shock was understandable.

“Please?”

“Alright… here gimme your hand.” Nyx’s right hand was taken up in Mozu’s sweaty left. “Now put yer hand kind of on my shoulder blade?” Nyx could feel her friend’s nervous tremors on her left palm. Mozu’s rural accent became more pronounced when she was nervous, Nyx noted.

“Now if I’m the boy, you gotta sort of follow my feet okay? So when I take two steps, you go backwards and follow with your feet, alright?” Mozu did as she described and took a sweeping step forward with her left leg, which Nyx was forced to follow, followed by a step slightly to the side with the right. “Now our feet sort of come together like _this_ …Alright now the same thing again, with our opposite feet.”

“Got it.” Nyx wouldn’t deny she was looking at her feet the whole time.

They repeated the action a few times, making an almost zig-zag shape across the open space in Mozu’s tent.

Mozu giggled. “I guess I gotta show you how to turn, huh?”

Nyx smiled back at her dancing partner. The tremors were gone. “That would be appreciated.”

“So now we just have to angle ourselves a little bit on one of our steps…”

By the time they’d done a few circles around the tent, it was apparent Mozu was no longer in a fit of nerves.

“Nyx, you didn’t use your magic on me, did you?”

Nyx tried her best at an imitation of an innocent expression. “Why ever would you think that?”

“Because now I’m feeling all excited instead of nervous…!” She laughed again. “Why was I ever worried before? _You’re_ a much worse dancer than _me_!”

“Hey!” But Nyx was smiling. She gave her friend a solid hug, trying not to ruin either of their dresses in the process. “No spells. I promise. I’m so happy for you Mozu… even if that means I lose my favourite neighbour.”

“I dunno… I hear Odin’s room is right next door…”

Nyx stepped out of the hug and shoved her friend playfully towards the door. “Alright, out you! Out! You have a wedding to get to!”

Nyx thought about how surprised Odin would be when she asked him to dance tonight.

 

 

 

Nyx found pleased when the tinkling of the bell atop the front door of the lottery shop announced a new customer and it was none other than Odin Dark.

“Aha! So it _is_ my lucky day!”

Nyx’s smile was partially covered by her hand, which she had been resting her head in out of boredom. “Odin Dark doesn’t believe in something as whimsy as good luck, does he?”

“Only when in equal parts with bad luck, I’m afraid.”

“So when you say you’re having a lucky day…?”

“It means… absolutely nothing! For the two cancel each other out. ‘Luck’, unspecified, is truly neutral, and therefore not lucky at all.” He grinned at what he must have assumed was a witty response, then made a somewhat apologetic expression and added, “but I did mean –I meant to say I’m happy I ran into you.”

Nyx chuckled into her hand before finally sitting up straight. “Dusk or Dawn? Although if me being here is good luck then by your principles you’re sure to win only the consolation prize.”

“Dusk, of course!”

_Of course._

She brought the appropriate wheel to the front of the counter, which he gave generous spin.

Once the wooden wheel finally slowed, a small blue painted ball popped out.

“Hahaa!”

“Not bad. Looks like that wins you…” she checked today’s list taped to the back side of the counter. “…A steel sword.” She went to the back room to retrieve his prize.

She placed the heavy sword on the counter, which he picked up with relish, giving it a few controlled swings in the other direction.

She was mildly surprised he was able to wield that class of sword. But then again…

“Nyx!” Odin’s exclamation brought her out of her thoughts. “Do me the honour! Quick, name my prize!”

“What? No!” She flushed at the thought.

He lowered the weapon slightly, deflated. “What? Even after I gave you audience to my huge collection of named relics… surely you were inspired?”

“Inspired” probably wouldn’t have been her word of choice.

“If I named your sword would you consider using it?”

He seemed a little bit surprised at her request, and she was rewarded with one of his brief, serious expressions. For a moment, no one said anything.

“Come on Odin, you said it yourself –magic was a choice. A poor choice.” Aside from their one little breakfast outing, they’d kept up their training schedule. It was frustrating –for both of them –progress was slow. But what other option did they have?

Was it selfish to not want someone you cared about to die? She didn’t know what he was trying to block out from him past, but surely it wasn’t worse than death.

Still, she felt a twang of guilt when she saw his expression visibly dampen, his mouth an uncharacteristic straight line.

She sighed. “ _’Steely Stabber’_. Odin, your new powerful weapon is now _the Great Steely Stabber_. Happy?”

He grimaced. “Nyx that… is dreadful. You broke all the naming rules.” He went to sheath the weapon, then paused halfway as if realizing something.

“Odin?”

He finished sheathing the weapon then looked at her. “I’ll see you at dinner?”

“Of course.”

Nyx watched him leave the shop, his hand clenched tightly around the handle of the sword.

 

 

 

Nyx had thought Odin had forgotten their conversation in the lottery shop, and that she would find the sword resting on one of his shelves in his room the next time she visited. But a few days later, Nyx was forced to do a double-take when Odin showed up at the dinner table with his tray, donning a new outfit and the sword tied at his belt.

Although it was a trivial thing, the change in attire was momentarily startling. Somehow, the long embroidered jacket, tall boots and pants somehow looked more revealing on Odin than the yellow meshed mage’s outfit with the deep V. Nyx had to avert her eyes.

It was apparent Odin was feeling a bit self-conscious as he took a seat beside her, moving stiffly, the cuffs of his jacket making his arm look clumsy as he put the usual extra dessert in front of her. The fact everyone was watching him and no one was saying anything probably wasn’t helping.

Finally, Niles spoke up. “Odin! You didn’t even give me a chance to say farewell to your abdominals?”

The tension released, it seemed everyone at the table finally started breathing again.

“Odin, what is that, strapped to your hip?”

“It’s called a sword, Selena. I’m sure you’re familiar with them? You have one attached to your own belt right now.” Everyone laughed at Odin’s reply, and even Selena smiled shyly down at her food.

“Your sword-hand been acting up again?” Laslow asked. Although Nyx didn’t get the joke, the three of them tittered more at this. Even Nyx found the atmosphere to be contagious –she was smiling into her orange juice.

When the conversation eventually dissolved into it usual meal-time normality, Odin finally caught her eye.

“So Nyx, does this new image please you?”

A part of her thought she shouldn’t stroke his ego but she knew her relief was probably already too apparent on her face anyways. Instead of answering she asked, “Odin why don’t you come over tonight?”

 

 

 

Nyx found herself uncharacteristically excited as she sat near the small fire burning a few meters from her tent. She was realizing she was enjoying the new spectrum of feelings Odin was invoking in her –it was addicting. She was becoming particularly fond of the feeling she got when they spent time together, just the two of them, and after limiting herself from such personal interactions for so long she wasn’t going to deny herself the pleasure.

She kept replaying the scene that happened a short while ago when Selena had come to her, looking appropriately uncomfortable.

“Hey. Uh. I just wanted to say thank you.”

“For…?”

“For saving him.”

Nyx had felt confused –she was hardly solely responsible for saving Odin in Valla. And that had happened well over two months ago.

“Eugh, no, _stupid_. I mean for whatever you said to convince him to re-class. He’s been so into this dark mage stuff, Laslow and I had just sort of given up. I thought you might have been a bad influence with all your evil abra-kadabra nonsense but…maybe you aren’t so bad after all.”

Nyx tried to remember what she’d said to Odin that might have been responsible for this change. No one thing came to mind.

“He’s stronger than you think, Selena. I won’t take full responsibility for this –I’m sure he came to the choice himself.”

“Yeah well… I doubt he would have done it if he didn’t have someone he felt like sticking around for. Odin can be pretty reckless in his imaginings, but the dweeb is pretty fond of you. I guess if it saves his ass…”

Nyx smirked, although she was humbled by the remark. “You mean he doesn’t act like this around all the dark mages he meets?”

“Pfft, not even close.” Selena sighed exaggeratedly, shaking her head slightly. “It’s disgusting, really, the way he fawns over you. Anyways, have a good night Nyx.”

“Say hi to Subaki for me.” Selena and Subaki, although obviously in a relationship, where one of the few pairs who seemed happy to not formally tie the knot. Selena, for whatever reason, still tried to deny the whole thing.

Selena turned abruptly on her heel, facing Nyx again, her face almost as red as her hair. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about! Goodbye…!” Selena turned around again and practically ran in the other direction.

Nyx poked the flames idly, wondering how she got up in this tangled mess. As an afterthought, Nyx remembered who her guest was and muttered a simple incantation, turning the fire’s little flames an ominous purple.

As if on cue, she heard the familiar gait of her friend trampling in the brush, the sound altered slightly because of his new boots.

“Good evening, Odin.”

The flame had the intended effect –his face was only solemn for a second before it brightened. “Nyx this is the coolest fire I’ve ever seen.”

She smiled. “I’m glad. I thought we could sit outside instead. My tent is a bit of a mess.”

He took a seat beside her on the long-dead log.

“I asked Leo for permission to re-class.”

“I noticed.”

“It was that seal we found, from my room? –I can use swords, but I can still use magic. It seemed like a win-win.”

“Is that what Robin used? Swords and Tomes?”

Odin blinked in surprise. “You… yeah. He did actually. Your powers of observation are truly impressive, as usual.”

“Not enough to puzzle you out though, evidently. Don’t you think it’s time you told me what’s going on?”

Odin ran his hand through his hair. “I shouldn’t be surprised; I knew it was only a matter of time before your superior instinct whispered into your ear that not all is as it seems. Even now, looking at your majestic image, the truth is rising to the surface, unable to hold itself in any longer!”

Nyx’s heart was hammering in her chest –Odin’s unusual lineage, his mysterious and tragic past, the arcane artifact he had kept hidden in his room –would she finally have an answer?

“Y-your intense gaze is… unnerving me…”

Nyx let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding. “Odin…”

“I…” He laughed nervously, “I think I’m in love with you Nyx.”

Oh.

_Oh._

Nyx had been expecting something so entirely different, at first she wasn’t sure how to react. And then, upon coming to terms with what had been said, she realized with some sort of dull shock that she _still_ didn’t know how to react.

Nyx had, to the best of her knowledge, never been loved by anyone before. And she was almost certain she had not loved anyone in the long expanse of her life. She realized, that even if she did love Odin, she would have no idea what that _felt_ like.

Her usually stoic face must have revealed something to him, because Odin began to look troubled. His eyes, which had been watching her intensely suddenly darted in the other direction. He bit his lip. “Perhaps… I’d gotten ahead of myself.”

Nyx thought about what Selena had said. “Is that why you changed classes?”

Her directness seemed to wound him and he flinched. “Mostly, yes. Death is a lonely alternative. And I thought the past wouldn’t seem so haunting if I had any sort of future to look forward to.”

“A future… with me?”

He wasn’t looking at her any more. “I was never supposed to have a future…” he seemed to struggle for the correct word, “ _here_. And so I tried to deny myself any sort of attachment to… _here_. But it seems like Odin Dark has failed –and the funny thing is, I was fine with that. I would gladly stay here forever with you Nyx.

With a painful ache Nyx realized Odin didn’t have forever like she did. “I wouldn’t want that for you.”

“What?”

“Forever. It’s a long time.”

The evening was not going at all how Nyx was planning, and now Odin was sitting beside her with a dejected air she wish she knew how to remedy. She supposed the evening might not have been going how he had been hoping either.

“You’ll have to pardon me, I’m not a master of words like you.”

“I’m not…” he muttered to his feet.

“I don’t know what love feels like. --And I don’t mean that to sound almighty or aloof or anything like that. I just mean… even if I did love you back, I wouldn’t know.”

He watched her carefully. For once she couldn’t read what he was thinking. “You were expecting something else tonight?”

“I was,” Nyx admitted, feeling a tinge of foolishness. “But,” her small fingers found his hand resting on the log and managed to intertwine their fingers, and she smiled lightly “I’m not disappointed. Not really.”

He gave a shy smile in return. “I told you, any other secrets I have don’t matter anymore, Nyx.”

Nyx thought maybe she could convince herself to forget about the mysteries surrounding Odin Dark for just a little while longer. A warm, dizzying sensation was beginning to fill her, separate from the tingling in her fingertips, and she tried to push back the impulse to prevent herself such happiness. But how could she accept his feelings so openly and give nothing concrete in return?

“Forever is a long time,” Nyx repeated, although her thumb was tracing happy circles on the top of his hand.

Odin had slowly leaned forward, now close enough that they shared the same air. Nyx boldly closed the space between them, noting how his voice hitched at the contact.

“You know, I can’t fix your problems Odin. Don’t use me to escape.”

He didn’t reply immediately, instead returning her first kiss with vigor, his free hand now tangled in her long hair.

“And I can’t fix your problem either Nxy. I don’t know what you thought, or what you may have heard or assumed but –I can’t help you either. I'm sorry.”

Nyx would have another moment to be disappointed by this, but for now she was too caught up with the feeling of Odin’s tongue just barely grazing her bottom lip and the pulses of excitement ringing through her body.

“If you keep this up I’m going to have a whole new problem.” She was surprised by the own breathlessness of her voice.

He dipped his head and she felt him smirk against her exposed neck. He allowed his teeth to graze the sensitive skin their briefly, before giving a slow kiss to the burning flesh. “I think I can help with that.” His voice was low, and either the proximity to her ear or his statement nearly caused her to shiver.

Soon after they were in her tent, the smell of dusty old books filling the air, a lamp lit in haste flickering beside her bed. Unsure of where to look, Nyx was staring at the slight purplish light which could barely be seen through the light material of her tent –the fire now unattended. Odin had traveled lower and lower down her body, until now she found him situated between her legs. Clearly men had upped their game since she’d last been involved with such things.

He’d just barely began kissing her core, one hand rubbing lightly against her inner thigh when he lifted himself up to look at her, the scent of her on his breath, his eyes as dark as his exaggerated persona.

“Nyx, call me Owain.”

Her mind elsewhere, she didn’t understand the request, nor why he was requesting this _now_.

“Why?”

“Because, err, that’s my name. My real one.”

She would have been upset, had he not gone back to his previous task, of which he was surprisingly talented. Every unintentional utterance from her lips was matched with a pleased groan from him directly against her body, only heightening the affect. She became aware of some shuffling and movement which suggested he was working on relieving his own pent up arousal.

She realized, later, why he’d told her his real name –she found it came surprisingly easily off her tongue as she came undone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright guys, one more chapter left! I hope everyone has enjoyed the ride so far --and sorry for the late update this time!
> 
> As always, kudos and comments are always appreciated. That was my first time writing something so (vaguely) explicit, so I hope I didn't burn anyone's eyeballs. I often find myself disappointed with any mature content I find in MxF fics so I wanted to take a stab at it myself.
> 
> By the way, you can find me on twitter here--> https://twitter.com/chrrybubblegum   
> or on tumblr here--> http://cherry-bubblegum.tumblr.com/


	4. Beginning...

Nyx watched Odin place the last book up on the high shelf next to his window. The curtains were open despite the chilly wind to help air out the mildew-y smell of old paper that seemed to cling to the pages of Nyx’s collection.

“I can’t believe we finally did it.” Her usually-neutral tone almost revealed the true extent of her astonishment. She’d thought it’d take a significant part of Odin’s _life_ to clear out his junk, but really it was just shy of six months. And true to his word, he’d allowed her to place all of her books amongst his empty shelves.

“I still can’t believe you can _read_ this stuff…!” Odin was still staring in bewilderment at a book he’d just picked up apparently at random, written in an old script and in an even older language. Nyx held the belief that the strongest tomes were those in some forgotten tongue.

“When you’ve been alive for 107 years there are quite a few things you get around to learning, somehow or another.” Nyx walked up to Odin from behind, stepped close and wrapped her arms around his middle, resting her head against his back. She was still a little obtuse with an appropriate outlet to her affections, but she liked to think she was getting better.

He rubbed her hand resting against his chest absentmindedly, his other one still holding up the book. “Oh. I’m 25. By the way. I, uh, avoided your question before. But it doesn’t seem fair to keep my age a secret now that you’ve told me yours...”

Nyx chuckled. “And what does the _Pontiff of Pocus_ think about my dark secret? _Verald ara nasoli?”_ She smiled into his back as she felt him physically shiver at the exotic tongue. The strangest things seemed to make Odin tick. Maybe dead languages had other uses after all.

He recovered quickly. “Childs play! But a mere speck compared to the _hidden truths_ Odin Dark harbors!”

She felt the familiar pang of irritation. Apparently these “hidden truths” actually belonged to someone named _Owain_ \--the same man currently squirming in her arms. “About that…”

“Wait, before you speak another word!” He clasped her one hand and spun himself around so they were facing each other, intertwined hands somewhat outstretched as if they were about to begin some theatrical dance. “It has come to my attention that my abode, although now stocked with your fabulous artifacts, is missing something! In fact, it is a crisis we need to remedy immediately-!”

Nyx’s eyebrows raised, just slightly. “Oh? And what is that?”

His face softened into a smile. He brought his hand to rest gently against her face in an intimate gesture, his touch tingling where it made contact. “You.”

She covered his hand with her own, leaning her cheek into it. She wondered if he’d thought of that line himself, or if Laslow had given him some tips. “You mean, move in with you? Here? Hmm.” She closed her eyes, feigning contemplation. “And if I say no?”

“I-my heart would surely explode! Even you couldn’t possibly be that cruel?”

She opened her eyes and grinned at his astonished face. It took a moment before he digested the expression and grinned in return, his other hand clasping hers tighter.

“But Odin, I don’t think there’s room for _me_ on your shelves…”

She took a few steps towards the bed, leading Odin until the back of his legs hit the mattress and his knees buckled, forcing him to sit down.

“What about… on my lap?”

Nyx took a quick glimpse at the door to make sure it was shut before straddling her partner. She leaned in slowly, put her lips right next to his ear and whispered, “ _No more talking to Laslow.”_

 

 

“All right, _Owain_. What’s with the secrecy? Why did you call me out here?”

“Out here” was in fact the very clearing Odin had first mysteriously invited her to share the names of his tomes. The weather was similar as it had been that day –nearly a year had transpired since then. The climate of Corrin’s dragon-realm was back to being on the warmer side of mild, the weak “winter” had come to a close some time past.

The atmosphere between the two of them was vastly different however. He was, back then, still an oddity to her, somehow more childlike than many of the others at camp. She’d had her own walls built up around her. But, she recalled, he had managed to get her to laugh that day. Maybe it really was Odin’s dark magic that had finally softened her heart and vanquished the loneliness she hadn’t even realized the enormity of until it was gone. Her many friends –Mozu, Reina, Orochi and others since, had no doubt helped.

Nyx still wasn’t confident with the word “love”, but she knew Odin had somehow become her closest companion (He preferred “accomplice”. She didn’t.).

His back was turned away from her, the brim of his jacked blowing dramatically in the light breeze. “Well, Nyx. I’ve been thinking about a child.”

A cold sweat broke out on her exposed skin.

“A child? What child?”

“The child that will be born to us.”

 _How could he know?_ There was no way he could know –she’d just found out herself. She hadn’t even been aware her magically afflicted body could still _produce_ children. And yet…

“What? Make sense!”

“A child who might inherit your calamitous might, as well as my own sacred blood… We will continue to exist in our child, like a bridge connecting us to the future… that’s what I was thinking of. Deep, right?” He turned to look at her, his face benevolent.

She exhaled. Of course he wasn’t having some uncanny third sense. He was just being Odin.

Still, this was oddly forward, even for Odin. But then she noticed him fiddling with something in his hands.

“…Is this your roundabout way of proposing to me?” She looked him directly in the eye, until he wavered and looked away. She was no expert in proposals, although so many had been married in the past year she at least had some vague idea of how it was usually done. What was surprising was the anticlimactic nature –considering this was Odin.

“W-well… you could take it like that…”

He was _nervous_ , she realized. The surprises were plenty this evening.

“I see… I’m disappointed in you, Odin.”

“What?”

“A cowardly, indirect proposal is hardly behavior for a mysterious, shadowy figure. A proper practitioner of the fell arts would just ask directly, consequences be damned!” She was hitting him with heavy blows, she knew. But she knew how he operated.

“Your words strike with the force of the most fearsome curses…”

She interrupted him, taking a step in his direction, speaking loudly. “Odin, did you have something to say?”

“N-no! Nothing at all. I… could have proposed normally if… I wasn’t so intimidated. But every time I look at you and your unholier-than-thou aura, I feel unworthy…”

Her freshly-thawed heart quickened at this. How could he possibly feel unworthy compared to someone like her?

She sighed and put a hand on his arm. She softened her words and her tone. “Will you stop doing that? I told you once, I accept who you are, regardless of how malefic you might not be.”

“I know you say that, but…”

She tugged at the fabric of his jacket impatiently. “No! Say it right! This is your last chance.”

He fumbled again with the little box in his clumsier-than-usual hands before finally opening it. “All right… Nyx, I love you. Please accept this ring and marry me.”

She smiled and allowed him to put the ring on her finger. She noticed it was made with one of the magical stones they found in his room the first day they spent cleaning. She wondered if he had used the partner stone in a matching article for him.

She stood on her toes and kissed him. “That’s better. Yes. Now, what shall we name this child you’re imagining?” She directed his hand to her stomach, still far from showing.

 

 

If Nyx had doubts about what love was before, they disappeared when Ophelia was born.

From the moment she held their daughter in her arms in the deeprealm she and Odin had been given, she knew her life would never be the same.

Nyx never believed Odin when he used to say some names just came to him with some objects, but when she saw her daughter look up at her with bleary, unfocused eyes, Nyx decided there might be some truth to it after all. She cooed “Ophelia”, and her husband’s watery eyes were confirmation that this was best name (on a very short list) she’d ever come up with.

She wondered, had her own mother felt the same when she held her as a baby? And if so, how could such feeling be replaced with fear and hatred?

This was one of the reasons Nyx made the promise to herself to never abandon Ophelia like she herself had been cast away –to love her no matter what kind of person she became. And both she and Odin had the belief that, despite the war still raging in the regular universe, that as much time should be devoted to their daughter as they were able to give.

And Nyx was able to give _a lot_ of time.

For once she was thankful for her curse and the opportunity she had, which many of her comrades did not. She was the only one at camp able to live full-time in one of the deeprealms with the augmented timelines. But even without the cost of _time_ , it was still a weighty sacrifice.

“Ophelia, what did I say? No splashing –Soleil doesn’t like it.” Nyx was beside a calm stream in Mozu and Laslow’s deeprealm, and had brought little four-year old Ophelia to visit for a playdate with Soleil. Nyx’s friends, like all the parents in camp, couldn’t afford to spend as much time with their children as they’d like. Of course the children had caretakers in their deeprealms, but Nyx often offered make a visit with her own daughter. She may not be their mother, but she’d become common enough in many of their lives she’d been called “Auntie Nyx” on more than one occasion, to both her bewilderment and amusement.

“Mommy I’m not _splashing_! It’s _big-giant-waterblast_! My most powerful attack!” Her daughter pushed a wave of water in her friend’s direction again to demonstrate, causing Soleil to shriek and run onto the shore, giggling when Ophelia chased her and the two began running clumsily in the wet sand. Soleil had found a stick on the ground and was now brandishing it in defense.

“Try your huge-waterboom thingie now!”

“Hmm. We need to go back in the water.”

“No! That’s cheating!”

Ophelia appeared to pout for a moment before running up to Nyx, sitting on a blanket with a book.

“Mommy can I borrow that?” She pointed to Nyx’s novel.

Nyx raised her eyebrows. “Oh? And what do you think you’re going to do with my book?”

She sighed as if explaining it was a hassle. “You and Daddy always use books when you do magic. I can only do magic if I’m in there.” She pointed at the river. Soleil was already distracted, using her stick to make scribbles in the sand. “So I need it so I can defeat Soleil. My nemesis!”

Nyx chuckled. That was a new word. “We use _tomes_ , not books. Besides, even if this was a tome and not just a story, you wouldn’t know how to use it.”

Her daughter considered this. “Ok. Today I’ll use the river. But tomorrow you can teach me to use a toom?”

“ _Tome._ I’ll talk to Daddy and see what he says.” She poked her daughter on the nose.

“Whoohoo! Daddy --that means yes!” Ophelia, fists raised, ran back to her friend, and it wasn’t long before they were both distracted with making designs in the sand.

Nyx looked at the wedding ring on her finger. The matching stone had been put into Odin’s ring, and because of the magical properties they were able to light up each other’s rings with the briefest wave of magic, even across different times. Sometimes he would make hers blink, just to let her know he was thinking of her. When it stayed lit up for a significant period that meant she was needed in the next battle and she would need to find someone to watch Ophelia so she could go back to the camp. For Nyx, the battle would usually only last a day or two. But for her daughter, this would pass as nearly two weeks. For now, her ring was reflecting the subtle sunshine above, but not magically lit.

Odin made a better effort than many of the parents at camp to visit his daughter, even if it was an expensive exchange in time. Leo and Corrin had given him leave every weekend to spend here. Ophelia was four. Just over four months had passed in “normal time”. Odin was now technically a little older than he should have been because of his visits, but not noticeably so. Not yet.

Nyx hadn’t aged at all.

She missed him –that sensation alone was new to her. She wished she hadn’t taken their months living together for granted. She made sure to make it very clear she was happy for his company when he did visit.

Neither her nor Odin had made any concrete plans to train little Ophelia in magic, although Nyx could sense she would likely have a natural talent for it. Although what kind of magic she may excel in Nyx wasn’t sure –Odin had shared that his mother had been a troubadour, so maybe lessons in magic didn’t need to end up as violent as they feared. Many a child left to grow up in the deeprealms were now fighting on the battlefield next to their parents. This wasn’t a future she and Odin wished for their daughter. They hoped it wasn’t inevitable.

Still, she thought as she twisted the ring on her finger, sending a playful pulse of magic to its pair, she knew Odin would be secretly pleased to know his daughter wanted to learn. And Nyx knew she would be a more-than-competent teacher.

Odin had been her first student, after all.

 

It was Ophelia’s thirteenth birthday, and Odin was pinning a brand new cape –a present from him, around their daughter’s neck. Morning sunlight was lighting the room into a cheery yellow hue from the open windows.

“Father, I can feel the power surging through me! Are you sure it’s okay for me to have such an item?”

“Of course! You are now a full baker’s dozen years old, after all.”

“What’s it called?”

“Shroud of the Ethereal Mystic!” Odin replied without missing a beat. Nyx tried her best to not snort into her coffee.

“WOW! Does that mean now _I’m_ an Ethereal Mystic?”

“Of course! It is the first step in the long, perilous journey of a chosen one. Maybe, one day, you will achieve greatness equal to your father, face the calamitous perils which I have endured, battle the –“

“Okay you two, I’ve got something too.” Nyx pulled a fire tome from underneath her chair. They were seated at the brightly lit dining table in the little cabin Nyx and Ophelia had called home for the past 13 years. She’d grown fond of the bright wood paneling and large windows. Corrin’s castle was dreary in comparison. Nyx was happy their daughter was able to grow up in a happy place like this.

Ophelia’s grey-blue eyes sparkled in a way not unlike her father’s. “A tome of my own? What fell magics are within, waiting to be awakened by this maiden’s deft hand…!? Mother, its name…?”

Odin tried to hide his apologetic grin behind his hand.

“Er, you can name it.”

She seemed only more excited at the prospect. “This will take time. I will dedicate all of tomorrow for the task –at least! That is unless…” She looked uncertainly between the two of her parents.

“Unless…?” Odin questioned.

“Well, you’ve now given me an appropriate garment and my very own magical weapon… is it too hopeful for me to think you might be bringing me back with you?”

Nyx and Odin’s eyes locked for a quick second. Nyx had had this conversation with her daughter many times, and her answer had always been the same. Many children, just barely old enough to wield a weapon, were now part of Corrin’s army and fighting the battles. Nyx didn’t wish the same fate for her daughter.

“Ophelia the war doesn’t need another mage badly enough to recruit you and bring you to your death.”

She stood up, defiant. “But mother! You said so yourself, I’m strong—“

“You’re also _thirteen_.”

Ophelia’s face hardened. Only when her usual demure features turned sour did Nyx think she saw her own appearance reflected in her daughter. That and her hair. Everything else was all Odin. “That didn’t stop you—“

“Ophelia. Why don’t you go up to your room? We’ll chat later once you’ve calmed down.”

There was truly no one she cared about more than her father, and at his reprimand she immediately looked guilty and shamefaced. Taking her tome, she quickly went up the stairs, shutting the door quietly behind her.

Nyx stated blatantly, “You know, I have no idea what I’m doing.” She was disappointed that this morning had to open with an argument. She wondered if maybe she could have handled the situation better –at least for Ophelia’s birthday.

Odin scoffed, and moved his chair closer to hers, wooden legs scraping on the tiles. “Of course she’s not going to come fight in this war. You’re –we’re –being perfectly reasonable.”

Nyx sighed, surprised at the wave of emotion hitting her this early in the morning. “No I mean… _parenting_. I hardly had parents. Odin I _killed my parents_. I’m sure that makes me technically unqualified for this mess. She would probably have been much better off if we’d switched places.”

Odin faltered a second before he put a hand around her back and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze and a quick kiss to her temple. He spoke softly. “You’re too hard on yourself. Our daughter is brilliant, happy… I couldn’t think of a better mother. You’ve given up so much to stay here with her –I’m sure she’ll appreciate it one day. Plus… your childhood was marred by unloving and fearful parents. You love Ophelia more than anything. I know you do.”

She tried to smile in return. She turned her head and kissed the hand resting on her shoulder.

 _I miss you._ She let her sentiment hang in the air unspoken. She didn’t need to say it out loud –she knew he understood.

“Say, why don’t I tell our rebellious offspring about the time you saved her foolish father from the brink of death?? She does love my narratives... That should serve the purpose of both cheering her and also scaring her –just a little bit.”

How funny it was to think, that to Odin that would seem an almost recent memory while to her, over a decade had been lived, mostly in his absence.

“Only if you promise not to embellish it like you always do…”

“Odin Dark does not make promises he cannot keep!”

 

 

Nyx was allowing herself the small luxury of spending time in the same dimension as her husband and friends –a small reward for the grueling battle they all just endured. Thankfully Nyx was only feeling the physical pains of battle, however she knew that any who knew the late Queen Mikoto were still recovering from the mental shock of having to battle her possessed doppelganger.

As such, Nyx was surprised when she heard Orochi’s distinctive knock on her door. Odin was still having his wounds tended by one of the healers, so it was just her at the moment, feeling small on the too-big bed.

“Come in.”

There was hardly a second in the interim before the door burst open, and Orochi practically fell in, looking distressed.

“What is it? Are you alright?” Nyx wasn’t unwilling to lend some comforting words if that’s what Orochi wished –she knew how close her friend was to Mikoto, but Nyx was confused as to why Orochi might be coming to her for sympathy when there were a few more likely candidates given the situation. Nyx had never met Mikoto.

Seeming to remember something, Orochi turned around and shut the door gently behind her. Then she hurried back and sat down on the bed beside Nyx, not waiting for the invitation. She looked pale and unusually sweaty.

“Nyx my friend I broke one of my rules.” Her voice was hushed, even despite the closed door. “I know we diviners avoid doing _in-depth_ predictions on our friends but… forgive me, I was in a mood and had a _bad feeling_.”

Nyx was only more puzzled. “You looked into my future?” It was true –most people with some ability to look into the future avoided looking into their own, and for reasons of privacy and bias generally avoided _serious_ insights into the futures of their friends and loved ones. “You could have saved incriminating yourself and not come knocking on my door to tell me about it. Why are you here?” She regretted her snappish tone but she wasn’t pleased with the idea of her friend diving into personal matters Nyx herself wasn’t even yet aware of.

Instead of answering right away, Orochi placed one of her large, square divining cards face down into her hand. “I know. I know… but Nyx, it didn’t feel right not to say anything. You would have been able to read me like one of your books and tell something was up anyways. I’m not going to _make_ you do it but… look at that card.”

Nyx, alone, was wise enough that she could have resisted the temptation. But then she thought of her daughter, almost grown and probably relaxing somewhere in her deeprealm right now. She thought of Odin and how far they’ve come and how much she still had left to learn about him.

She flipped the card over.

On the card was an ornate zero. Or perhaps a ring. The letter O?

“I’m not familiar with the Hoshidan cards.”

Her friend’s clammy hands grasped her shoulders. “ _Null_ \--Nothing! This is the card that was drawn for your future Nyx! This card can represent many things but I can only see one way of interpreting it in regards to a representation of what’s to come...”

“…Are you suggesting…?”

Her friend was close to hysterics. “Oh Nyx, please don’t come along for the next battles!” Nyx hushed her friend, reminding her to stay quiet, now that she was savvy to the topic. Jakob had a surprisingly nasty habit of eavesdropping. “You’ve already done so much –I’m sure Corrin will understand. I can make you something to make you sick enough—“

“You know that’s not how predicting the future works. It doesn’t just _change_.” It felt like Nyx was having this conversation from some place just outside her body. She could hear her reasonable response, but her mind was racing –not with fear of death or dying (she’d long gotten over those) but with thoughts of all the people she loved, and how she felt like this news was coming just when she’d learned how to _live_.

She patted her friends back until Orochi had calmed. Maybe karma hadn’t forgiven her for her sins after all. Maybe true repentance came only when you lost everything you had, once you’d actually gained things worth losing.

 

 

That night Nyx wasn’t able to sleep. On one hand she didn’t want to take Orochi’s warning to heart, but she was well-versed enough in divination to know Orochi was even more talented than herself in such things. She was upset that her friend, good-intentioned as she may have been, had to inform her of her prophecy. But at the same time, if Nyx knew one of her friends was doomed to an empty future, would Nyx actually be unflappable enough to pretend she didn’t know?

“Nyx, my dusk, what’s the matter? You’ve been tossing about for hours…”

Nyx was hit with an unexpected twinge of guilt. The relatively minor thought that she’d disrupted her partner’s sleep only led to thoughts of how, even in her death, she would be a burden to the lives of others. How cruel it is, to have someone fall in love with you, only to die? And her daughter –how Odin always spoke of how terrible it is for children to grow up without their parents. In the darkness of her room, Nyx felt as though she was freshly cursed –ruining the lives of those around her and out of control.

Instead of answering, Nyx instead rolled over and wrapped her arms around Odin’s middle. The pleasant magical buzz from the skin contact did nothing to calm her. It was too warm under the blankets for such cuddling, but Nyx felt like she needed to selfishly hold something to help keep her grounded.

Odin must have sensed something was truly wrong, because he turned around groggily and hugged her back, his hand stroking her mess of hair lazily.

“Nyx?”

“Odin, explain that crystal I found in your room.” Nyx was surprised at the urgency at which she finally decided enough was enough –she needed to understand Odin’s story before it was too late.

“Huh?”

“All those years ago!” Her voice now seemed inappropriately loud in their dark room, but desperation was making her careless. She realized as an afterthought that to him, it wasn’t over a decade ago. His sporadic weekends spent in the deeprealm had brought him a little bit closer to 30 than he used to be, but he had maintained himself more in the regular flow of time than not. “Tell me _Owain_ –I’ve waited long enough. What is going on with you, Selena and Laslow?”

“Nyx…” He sounded almost pained. “I told you before, whatever it was it doesn’t matter anymore. I’m here with you now. I’m happy! The crystal doesn’t mean anything anymore.”

“No. Don’t. Don’t you dare. You promised! Have I not taught you enough magic to fulfill my end of the bargain?”

It was true –although Odin now routinely used a blade in battle, he still enjoyed “the dark arts” and Nyx had continued to coach him. Much of the recent lessons were spent in Ophelia’s deeprealm. Physical elements aside, Nyx had also taught him how to read simple ruined texts –much to his delight.

He buried his face in her hair. He remained silent so long she thought he may have managed to finally fall asleep. But then he spoke,

“Me, Selena, and Laslow are from the far future. The _far_ future. We grew up together during a time of terrible war. If you want me to go over the details later I can. All of our parents perished. But, we were sent back to before we were born, and we were able to save our parents from the future we experienced. We did it! We were all heroes –real heroes; me, Severa and Inigo. But not long afterwards we were approached by Anakos…”

“Anakos? You mean—?“ Nyx was struggling to follow. She knew however, with the tone Odin (or _Owain_ , she reminded herself) was using that he wasn’t exaggerating or hiding anything. With what she’d seen since joining the army, things which seemed impossible were starting to seem somewhat reasonable. Time travel included.

“It’s… complicated. I’m not sure I understand it myself. We were approached by the _good_ half of Anakos. He requested our assistance –in protecting his child, and in his eventual demise. So we came back. Back to _now.”_

“And the stone?”

“That was given to us for when we completed our mission. To return to the present.”

“ _The present_.” The idea seemed silly to Nyx. It was all a matter of perspective, but still…

“So imagine my surprise when I heard of you –a fellow chrononaut destined to ignore the fundamental rules of time! We met, two travelers from faraway ages, at a point of intersection, a mere tiny blip in the vastness of the ages...!”

“Coincidences aren’t such a miraculous occurrence.”

“I doubt something as trifling as a coincidence could make me feel like this.” He squeezed her tightly, as if that somehow proved his point. At least this time, the curious sensation did penetrate enough to comfort her a little bit. Timelines aside, Odin was precious to her. Keeping away from close company for so long, Nyx knew she couldn’t properly gauge how rare an occurrence love and devotion was. He seemed to like the idea that they were somehow destined to be together. But…

“And you… you didn’t think I would want to join you?” He was willing to sacrifice everything he had (for a second time, apparently) because he thought she had some strong attachment to this fragment of time in particular?

“In the present? Err, future?” She didn’t respond. He finally took his face out of the tangles of her hair to try and look at her properly through the dark. “Are you serious? Do you –are we going to go back together?”

Something about how hopeful he sounded caused tears to finally make their way to her eyes, voice cracking when she responded, “I don’t think I _can_.”

How terrible it was that she could only offer herself to accompany him to his own time when it was already prophesied that her time was running out. She’d been alive longer than anyone she knew of… how could it be that, now, her life seemed so short?

He seemed confused by her contradiction, but held her close as she gripped him harder and cried into his chest.

Selena had been right –Nyx knew, given access to such an artifact, she could undoubtedly rid herself of her curse. But, in some ironic twist, she realized she would rather allow Owain the opportunity to go back to the people she’d only heard about in brief mentions than covet the stone selfishly, even if that would have meant ultimately allowing herself to grow old with him.

 “Nyx?”

“Stop crying Nyx, I’m not going anywhere…”

“I wish you’d tell me what’s upsetting you, my love…”

“Nyx…”

She couldn’t bring herself to tell him what was bothering her.

 

 

When Odin returned from his shopping not with tomes but with their daughter, Nyx knew she’d chosen a bad day to be a stay back at the castle.

“Mother!” Ophelia twirled in her direction, dark hair splaying around her, before giving Nyx a hug. “Finally, I can exist with you and father, the sands of time matching our—“

“Stop. None of that. Why are you here?” Although the scolding was directed towards Ophelia, Nyx was mentally berating herself for spending a few days in the astral plane instead of with her daughter in her deeprealm. She’d been feeling anxious since her encounter with Orochi, and she was worrying she may have been rubbing off on her daughter. She’d come back to the army camp just to clear her head for a few nights.

Ophelia finally let go and looked appropriately sheepish, allowing Odin to answer for her.

“Our daughter was already out of her deeprealm, exploring the lonely, dusty streets in search of powerful weapons even before our paths met! And I’m sure if you could have seen the skill with which she battled our foes, you would be overwhelmed with pride like I and…” he finally faltered at the reaction on Nyx’s face.  “…forgive your husband and his weakness. Our daughter cannot be controlled by mere parental statutes!”

Nyx sighed. “Clearly…”

“Mother, you seemed so disconcerted lately. So I wanted to find ourselves a powerful weapon to help you out! Please don’t be upset…”

Nyx’s heart ached at what her daughter didn’t know. Relenting, she gave a kiss to Ophelia’s cheek. “Okay. I guess you win.” She’d done what she could to keep her daughter safe. She and Odin had been some of the most protective parents at camp, but she knew keeping her daughter away from everyone for any longer would only cause resentment. Ophelia was now as old as Nyx had been when she’d been cursed –it was hard to justify controlling her anymore. “Why don’t I show you where all the kids have their tents…?”

As the three of them made their way through camp, Odin squeezed her hand. “Nyx, don’t worry. I wouldn’t let anyone lay a hand on our daughter. Not back in the town, nor in anything else we may all end up in.”

“I know. I curse your adventurous blood… it’s tainted our daughter, it seems. I suppose it was only a matter of time…”

“Ha! _Yes!_ My bloodline, cursed with the desire for heroism and ultimate power… truly a devastating burden to bestow on my offspring, surely—“

“Aha! My parents, whispering dark secrets amongst themselves as their daughter watches –a punishment for the convicted??”

Of course, Ophelia and Odin continued back and forth this way until the cluster of tents was reached, at which point the two of them were at such a high level of theatrics, Nyx was glad she’d taken her daughter to visit many of the children as they were all growing up or else they would surely all be bewildered by her lovely Ophelia and her inherited mannerisms.

 

 

When Nyx had seen her name on the roster for the final battle in Valla, she took it as a final confirmation that Orochi must have been right –this was how she was going to die. This thought made Nyx fight with everything she had, while the reassurance that her daughter was not selected and safe at camp gave her peace of mind.

Nyx wondered, with a dark sense of humour, how many other fortunes of doom Orochi had given out, as every single person in their army that day seemed to be fighting with everything they had that day.

Needless to say, when the divine enemy was finally defeated, Nyx was confused to find herself very much alive. Torn up, tired, but very much alive. She’d built up this moment in her head for long enough that even after fighting an ancient dragon on a floating island in space… she was somehow left feeling underwhelmed.

She was still out of it when everyone began celebrating, still in the ruins of the Castle in Valla. Odin picked her up and swung her in an enthusiastic embrace, her head tucked into the crook of his shoulder.

“We did it, we did it! Nyx, my darkness, I’m so happy…!”

The smell of old sweat and blood began to ease her stupor. She was alive. Did that mean the card had been wrong…?

Nyx tried to process the kisses Odin was frantically peppering her face with, wondering what this all meant. She should have been dead.

But then again, she should have been dead decades ago.

 

 

“Did you... tell Leo you were leaving?”

The six of them were heading east to a small clearing just outside a small Nohrian village. The dawn was just beginning to lighten the sky, casting muted light on the small homes they were passing on the main road. Nyx, Odin, Ophelia, Mozu, Laslow and Soleil were planning on meeting up with Selena and her family just a few kilometers away. The fiery-haired family had settled in Hoshido in the interim after the great war; Selena had finally married Subaki, and he had hastily put forth his ideology of the Pegasus knights –one final thing he could leave behind.

Ophelia and Soleil were confronted with the choice by their parents and all had agreed to come –although they weren’t told explicitly what they were coming along for, just that if they chose to stay they would never be able to see their parents again.

It was an unfair choice to give to her young daughter, but Nyx felt the choice should be Ophelia’s.

“No. I thought it better to leave mysteriously into the night, allowing him to fill in the rest of our adventure with his own lively imaginings! Besides, even if I told him anything or left a note, I’d be forced to lie.”

“What about Niles?” Mozu asked. Of everyone present, the war had changed Mozu the most. She’d gained tremendous confidence and skill over time, and now donned the Hero’s garb and walked with spirited steps like her husband. Nyx was happy that she would be taking at least one friend with her into the unknown.

Odin’s frown deepened. The archer had become one of Odin’s closest friends, Nyx knew.  “No. I didn’t tell him. But he heard me creeping out of the castle. He said goodbye. I don’t know how he could have possibly suspected I was leaving…”

Nyx felt a twinge of bad conscience as she thought about how she parted with her friends –Reina and Orochi. She had been much less discreet; sending Orochi all of her treasured tomes, and Reina practically everything else. She was leaving no notes or explanations, but tucked into one of her books was a copy of the Hoshidan diviner card “null”, and scribbled next to the large ornate “O” was the remaining three letters of her husband’s name.

(Maybe that was still an incorrect interpretation of the card, but Nyx thought she was being rather clever regardless.)

“Inigo didn’t tell anyone either. I wonder what Xander will think…?” Mozu seemed to be making up for her husband’s unusual silence by speaking in his place. She was clearly already more comfortable calling Laslow by his real name than Nyx was referring to Odin as “Owain”.

“You brought your pegasi?” Soleil’s exclamation broke everyone out of their contemplative stupor. Indeed, in the distance three people were sandwiched between two winged horses. “Why??”

Nyx suspected at least part of the reason was so that Selena could pack more luggage with them –the two steeds were saddled up fully with stuffed looking bags.

Caeldori replied evenly, “Mother says they do not have pegasi which would allow father to ride in the future. So we’re bringing our own.”

“The future!” Ophelia sounded appropriately awed.

“Duh! Didn’t you guys even tell them where we’re going? I hope they don’t think we’re all going on a camping trip or something!” It was always amazing how quickly Nyx could tire of her friend Selena.

“Severa! You were the one so strict about keeping this a secret, so long ago! And now you twist it and make us, the true innocents, look like the careless ones!”

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about Owain.”

“Secret? Severa told me almost immediately after we—“

The red-haired culprit slapped her hand over Subaki’s mouth. “Not helping! So… who’s got it?”

“Are you excited to see our friends again?” Inigo finally spoke up, sounding almost amused.

“Yeah. I mean. _I guess_. We’ve earned it haven’t we? Hey, don’t make me look like the only one!”

“I have it.” Nyx pulled the small crystal out from the pocket of her travelling robe. She had been gripping it the entire walk over, almost teasing herself with the sensation. Some far away selfish part of her kept reminding her that she could easily take it and run. Take it and reverse her curse, live normally.

But then she would be denying all of these great people their ticket home. Besides, Nyx had a feeling Odin had made her carry it to prove a point to everyone else that she really was trustworthy.

Severa gasped and looked ready to protest but then closed her mouth. “Right. Well. How do you guys want to do this?”

“It’s too bad things like these don’t come with an instruction manual.” Soleil laughed. Even in the confusion she was still smiling. If the thought of traveling to another time deterred her in the slightest, she didn’t seem to let it show.  

“Well? Nyx _you’re_ the magic expert –how do you think this works?”

She turned it over in her palm again. In her experience, the more complicated and arcane magics tended to be the easiest to use. It’s like they were made to be tapped in to. “I think all we need to do is make sure we’re all in contact, and someone is touching the stone. I think if we’re all thinking about what’s going to happen, that should be enough to trigger it.”

Seeing the look on Owain’s face as they attempted to arrange themselves Nyx knew she’d made the right choice in forcing him to talk about the crystal before. Although it was a nice sentiment –sacrificing going back to the future to spend the remainder of his life with her now –it would have been wasted on her simply because most of what she cared about, him, their daughter, Mozu, were coming along anyways. He was beaming as he gripped her hand, the melancholy regarding Leo and Niles momentarily forgotten.

The chain of linked hands must have come together unexpectedly because without warning there was a popping sensation –like a _sound_ except Nyx knew she didn’t perceive it with her ears, and the ground suddenly felt like it was being pulled from under her, except when she tried to correct her balance she was already standing on solid ground.

Everyone else seemed to have a similar reaction, aside from Ophelia who really had lost her balance and was now laying on the ground. Instead of the packed gravel of a well-worn path, the seemed to be standing in a lush field. The grass was already trampled beneath them, but in all directions blades which tickled the mid-calf blew gently in an unfamiliar breeze. If it weren’t for the fact that the sun now appeared to be high in the midday sky, Nyx may have thought they were simply transported to Hoshido.

These initial observations aside, Nyx noticed something else: the magical static which seemed to follow the trio around in the past was gone. This was unsurprising, but what was remarkable was that Owain’s hand, still clasped in hers, was still giving her the usual pleasant tingles. This sensation, she was realizing, was separate from the one that the time-travelling spell seemed to have passively bestowed, and weaker, which is probably why she wasn’t able to separate the two previously.

She was still staring at their hands incredulously when Owain, emotion thick in his voice said, “Nyx, welcome home…!”

Trying to make sense of this amidst the clamor erupting around her –various exclamations, her daughter making her entrance speech to “the unexplored and exotic time of the future”, all she did was whisper, “Owain… your hand?”

“Hmm?”

“It… it still tingles. Your hand is making my skin tingle.” Even now her cheeks had the audacity to heat up; the sensations contact with him gave her were something she never brought up.

“Of course! It’s always like this.. Didn’t you feel it before?”

“…before?” Somewhere in the distance Nyx could hear Severa telling her Caeldori to stop making a scene of herself and get off the Pegasus.

“As I said, dearest Nyx, fate has brought us together, two souls brought together like two far-off expanses of bread in some cosmic sandwich…! I felt this from the very moment we met –it’s how I knew we must be destined to get to become acquainted! I truly was drawn to you from the moment we first met. This queer sensation… I’d always assumed you must have felt it too?”

A little delayed, a smile was finally playing itself on Nyx’s lips. “I was too distracted by your other-timely aura.” She wasn’t sure what to make of this new information. She’d heard of such hopeful and frivolous ideals –two people drawn together by an invisible force, destined for love before even meeting… “Soul-mates” But she’d filed it away as rubbish along with such things as “love at first sight”. 

When the group had finally composed themselves and began following the lead of the three across a small wooden bridge crossing a stream, Nyx was floored with another, more subtle sensation. She immediately gripped the side of the bridge to steady herself.

“Nyx? Uh, you guys go on ahead, we’ll catch up!” Owain was now at her side, hand on her back and looking concerned.

“Odin.”

“ _Owain_.”

“Owain I can feel it.”

“I know, you’ve already mentioned…”

“No! Not that. I can feel…” She paused a moment, making sure she wasn’t imagining things. It had been so long, she wasn’t sure she remembered what it felt like. And yet… “I can feel _time._ ”

“You mean…?” His eyes were glossing with moisture to rival her own, this discovery eliciting more emotion in the both of them than anything else which had occurred so far that eventful morning.

Was it the crystal?

Or had Nyx somehow, finally, made up for the sins of her past?

“Owain I think… I think we can grow old together now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who's followed this story through to the end! I'm so sorry the last chapter was such a wait...!
> 
> I'm sorry if the scenes with Ophelia seem rushed or less detailed perhaps than a lot of the other stuff? I thought it was important to highlight how special it would be that Nyx could literally be the only parent able to grow up with her child, BUT at the same time the point of this fic wasn't to focus necessarily on Nyx and her daughter's dynamics so... I kept it relatively minor. (as a side note, writing this somehow made me ship Ophelia and Soleil so I'm a little sorry I couldn't fit more of THAT in here haha)
> 
> Please, as always, kudos and comments are always appreciated!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm diving into an unknown territory... hetero-pairing fanfiction.
> 
> I'm sadly aware that this ship is not one of the more popular ones, so please, if you've taken the time to read please drop me a kudos or a comment :') I'm open to critique; in particular, I find it hard balancing Nyx and Odin's personalities (as in, trying not to make her too dark and him too ridiculous) so if you have any characterization feedback, I'd love it!


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